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| Employees toughen stand, Govt in financial dilemma | | |
BL KAUL
Jammu, Jan 28: Lakhs of government employees across different parts of state today observed strike, for second consecutive day, pressing for the implementation of the recommendations of sixth pay commission. Work in various state government offices remained paralysed due to the strike call by the employees' joint co-ordination committee. Shouting slogans for the extension of the Sixth Pay Commission benefits, hundreds of protesting employees marched through the city locations both in Jammu, Srinagar and other parts of the state.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has already agreed to extend the benefits of the pay commission to the state. But the state government is yet to arrange the financial support needed for the same. "The payment of arrears would alone amount to Rs.3,080 crore (Rs.30.8 billion) and thereafter, each year the state exchequer would have to bear an additional burden of Rs.1,380 crore (Rs.13.80 billion)," an official of the state finance department said.
The chief minister has approached the central government for financial support to extend the benefits to the government employees. The striking employees are also demanding the raising of the retirement age from the present 58 years to 60 as is applicable to the central government employees.
The government is though keen on meeting demand of employees but it is in fix. The recent statement of the state finance minister that implementation of 6th pay recommendations alone would cost Rs.3800 crore to the state exchequer which, according to him, is beyond the capacity of the state government due to its financial resources.
Though there is no denying the fact that that given the limited resources, the state can not implement the recommendations on its own without the support of the centre. But one wonders as to how both the coalition partners have been making promises during electioneering on implementation of the pay panel recommendations. Is it not a treachery? The people ask.
The observers believe that the state government was never financially well placed in implementing the recommendations right from the day one the centre announced its implementation. The way the state Governor handled the situation during his rule by appointing a committee headed by S L Bhat Financial Commissioner Planning was just to gain time and despite having submitted the report in time the Governor did not implement the recommendations of the committee rather put the ball in the alliance court.
One fails to understand what necessitated the state government to constitute a committee to examine the recommendations afresh when majority of states in the country in totality accepted the pay panel recommendations on the pattern of the central government. At the first instance there was no need to constitute a committee and more so prolonging the implementation of the recommendations of the Bhat's committee has given rise to the suspicions about the sincerity of the government.
If reports are to be believed certain agencies are working round the clock to make a division in the rank and file of the employees' fraternity. KAS officers Association, which has been in the forefront previously, has openly come out in support of the government and hailed the statement of the Finance Minister and suggested postponing of the proposed strike from November 27 while the Non-Gazatted employees are up in arms to go ahead with the strike call as they maintain that enough time has already been given to the state government for the purpose. What response the strike gets and how far the government succeeded in creating division in the employees' unions would be worth watching.
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