Expedite work on 7th pay commission: NMC

Tribune News Service

Jammu December 21

National Mazdoor Conference (NMC) president Subash Shastri has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to direct the chairman of the Seventh Pay Commission to start negotiations with representatives of employees without any further delay so that report could be submitted to the Centre within the stipulated period.

In a memorandum sent to the Prime Minister, Shastri said as there was only 12 months time to complete the report, the commission should visit all the states to obtain views of federations of state governments’ employees and pensioners may also get benefited out of it.

Shastri also urged him to sanction 20 per cent interim relief and merger of 50 per cent DA in basic pay in favour of employees and pensioners as recommended by the earlier pay commissions, adding that since the DA had crossed 107 per cent marks, there was no justification for withholding the merger of 50 per cent DA with basic pay/pension and as such it should be done immediately, which forms part of the recommendations of the 4th Pay Commission.

Shastri also sought total exemption of the dearness allowance (DA) from the ambit of income tax as DA was directly related to the price index.

He called upon the NDA Government at the Centre to frame a national policy for regularisation of daily-rated workers/ casual/contractual and ad hoc workers working in the Central Government as well as state governments across the country, besides raising of minimum wages at the national level to Rs 10, 000 per month.

He also urged the Prime Minister to intervene and take decisions in this regards immediately, so that uncertainty among the employees and pensioners in these issues could come to an end.