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| Cash-stripped state passes Bill on hiking salaries of MLAs, ministers’ | | | KUNAL SHRIVATSA
JAMMU, Mar 28:
Though the ongoing budget session of the State Legislative Assembly witnessed a series of heated debates, allegations and counter allegations between opposition members and treasury benches, the scene today, however, was completely different as the legislators cutting across party lines unanimously passed the bills hiking the monthly salaries of Chief Minister, Cabinet Ministers, Ministers of State and MLAs without much debate and arguments.
The lawmakers, who gave their nod to the Bills, on the other hand, forget that the State is reeling under huge amount of debts and is cash strapped viz a viz Jammu Kashmir’s exchequer would be overburdened with a steep hike in their pay and perks.
After the passage of the Bills, the Chief Minister is now entitled to draw a salary of Rs 90,000 per month which earlier was Rs 45,000.
The monthly pay of Cabinet Ministers has been hiked from Rs 40,000 to Rs 85,000 while the salary of Ministers of State, MLAs and MLCs gets a hike from Rs 40,300 to Rs 80,300 per month. The salary of the Speaker has been fixed at Rs 90,000 per month.
The House also okayed two-fold increase in the monthly pension of former ministers and legislators.
The new salary structure for the legislators would be implemented with retrospective effect from September 1, 2009.
Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Sagar had re-introduced the Bill, which was moved in the Legislative Assembly last year, to amend the laws governing the salaries and allowances of members, ministers and deputy ministers.
During the ongoing session when the Bills were again introduced for passage, a few of the legislators brought amendments to press for increase in their salary upto Rs one lakh per month but the government decided to hike the salary and other allowances by Rs 20000, over and above the original proposals of the Bill.
The Bill had proposed increase in wages of the Chief Minister from Rs 45,000 to Rs 70,000 per month, Cabinet Ministers from Rs 40,000 to Rs 65,000 per month and Ministers of State, MLAs and MLCs from Rs 40,000 to Rs 60,300 per month.
The Bill, which was listed in the Business couple of days back, was postponed due to absence of Chief Minister and Finance Minister Abdul Rahim Rather in the House.
While moving the Bills, Ali Mohammad Sagar said the Bills were introduced one and a half years ago but due to certain reasons they could not be passed. He said the government sought consensus in the House before their passage.
He said the government has brought the Bills as consensus was evolved on the structure and quantum of hike in the salaries and perks of legislators and Ministers.
Taking part in the debate on Bills, PDP leader Muzaffar Hussain Baig said 6th pay commission implementation has necessitated corresponding hike in the salary of the legislators as the market witnessed price escalation.
“The Government should enact a law ensuring hike in salaries and allowances as and when there is change in Price Index,” Baig said
While replying to the discussion on Bills, the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said it was necessary to hike the salary of the legislators in view of the rising price index.
“We have to formulate a policy so that the salary of the legislators is hiked after a specific interval of period… A transparent formula with a fixed timeframe should be adopted to hike the salary of legislators…. We could take the help of experts and I think after every five years the hike in the salary of legislators could be considered,” Omar maintained.
Highlighting the financial implications, Chief Minister said the state’s salary and pension bills, which were Rs 3,590 crore in 2001-02, are expected to touch Rs 14,739 crore in 2011-12. It was Rs 7896 crore (Rs 6,328 crore for salary and Rs 1568 crore for pension) during 2009-10.
Earlier, Deputy Speaker Sartaj Madani, who was in the Chair, adjourned the proceedings of the House for about 20 minutes to hold a meeting of the legislators for arriving on a consensus to increase the salaries and pensions of the legislators.
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