VIJAYAWADA: Ahead of Dusshera, the State government issued orders, enhancing the minimum wage of priests working at various temples under the purview of the Endowments Department to Rs 15,625, starting from November.
The order on revising Archakas Remuneration Fund (ARF) was issued by the Endowments Commissioner S Satyanarayana on Thursday. He instructed all district endowment officers and assistant commissioners to pay salaries to priests by adjusting the remaining amount from the temples’ Common Good Fund (CGF) in order to meet the basic salary of Rs 15,625.
As per the order, priests earning a salary of Rs 5,000 per month will now receive an additional Rs 10,000, while those drawing Rs 10,000 per month will get an additional Rs 5,000. Andhra Pradesh Archaka Samakhya president Agnihotram Athreya Babu expressed his happiness over Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy fulfilling his election promise to the priests. He said, “The decision to enhance the minimum wage will benefit 1,177 priests working in various temples across 26 districts.”
It may be recalled that the State government had announced a hike in the salary of the priests by issuing a GO on May 14, 2021, in accordance with the assurance given by the CM to provide financial aid to priests during his padayatra prior to his last election.