3,284 new posts of teacher
HP raises travel allowance by 60 p.c.
Tribune News Service

SHIMLA, Dec 1 — The Himachal Government today revised the travel and daily allowances and doubled the special pay for various categories of employees.

The decision was taken at the meeting of the state Cabinet, which met under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister, Mr P.K. Dhumal, this evening. It also decided to restore the special pay and secretariat allowance of certain categories of employees.

The travel and daily allowance has been increased by 60 per cent. The revised daily allowance will range from Rs 32 to Rs 80. The revised rate will be applicable from January 1, 1999. The special pay, which has been revised with effect from September 1, 1997, will vary from Rs 80 to Rs 1000 per month. The arrears on this account will be credited to the provident fund up to March 31, 1999. The revision of allowances will put an additional burden of Rs 17.10 crore on the state exchequer annually.

The Cabinet approved a career progression scheme for the benefit of employees facing stagnation. Under the scheme, any employee who fails to get a promotion will get the next higher scale after eight years and a step-up after 16 years and 24 years. In case there is no promotion over the next eight years, the employee would be given the next scale after completing 32 years of service.

The Cabinet also created 3284 posts of JBT teachers and decided to fill 5603 posts to regularise the services of 4159 voluntary teachers.

It also approved creation of 36 posts of subdivisional ayurvedic chikitsa adhikari and as many posts of clerks to suppot them. They will also be given drawing and disbursing powers. In the Welfare Department, 262 posts of helper and safai karamchari were created under the Integrated Child Development Scheme.

It also approved raising of loans o the tune of Rs 5.94 crore from HUDCO for construction of housing board colonies at Rohroo and Palampur.

The Cabinet also decided to increase the subsidy on farm inputs in non-irrigated areas by 10 per cent and reduce sales tax on edible oils. The rate of sales tax, which was 8 per cent on edible oil and 6 per cent on refined oil, has now been brought down to 4 per cent uniformly.

As per another decision, the government will recover sales tax on motor spirit at the first stage from the supplier oil companies instead of individual petrol stations. It decided to impose 8 per cent sales tax on mineral water in line with the neighbouring states.

Mr P.K. Dhumal, who briefed newspersons, said that henceforth ministers would attend office every Monday to Friday afternoon. They would meet legislators on Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the public on Wednesdays and Thursdays in the forenoon. In case any minister had to go out of station he would have to inform the Chief Minister's Secretariat.