Bonus, festival allowances of employees revised

Ahead of Onam, the government has revised the bonus and festival allowances of employees and pensioners.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Ahead of Onam, the government has revised the bonus and festival allowances of employees and pensioners. The minimum salary limit for getting bonus has been enhanced to Rs 24,000 from Rs 22,000 for employees drawing salaries as per the new scale.

For those with salaries under the old scale, the eligibility slab has been increased to Rs 23,000 from 21,000. For both scales, the bonus has been revised to Rs 4,000 from 3,500. The festival allowance for those who are not eligible for bonus has been enhanced to Rs 2,750 from Rs 2,400. Pensioners in all categories will get a special festival allowance of Rs 1,000.

The festival allowance of employees with various societies and government-controlled institutions who were given allowance between Rs 1,000 and 1,200 last year, will be given an additional Rs 100 this year. Ex-gratia family pensioners who were not given festival allowance till now will get Rs 1,000.

Freedom fighters’ pension
The Cabinet on Wednesday decided to enhance the Kerala freedom fighters' pension and other related pensions to Rs 11,000 from 10,800. Their DA will be revised equivalent to that of state service pensioners.
Pravasi welfare pension

The Pravasi Welfare Pension was fixed at a unified rate of Rs 2,000. Currently, pensions are given in two separate rates - Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 - based on their monthly contribution. Now onwards everyone will be given Rs 2,000 as a pension.

Other decisions

• Appointments to the State Electricity Regulatory Commission to be brought under the PSC. The Cabinet decided to bring in a legislation in this regard and issued its nod for the draft bill.
• Various categories of cycling competition - track, road and mountain bike - to be included among the sports items for which additional points would be granted in PSC tests for class 3 and class 4 employees.
• A permanent post of finance officer - not less than the rank of an under secretary - to be created at the State Project Directorate of Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA).
• A Rs 11.5-crore project to develop the  Indoor stadium at Manimalakunnu TM Jacob Memorial Government College to be included under KIIFB.

Financial Assistance

• The Cabinet decided to provide financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the family of Sreejith, a child who died due to alleged medical negligence while giving anaesthesia during a surgery at Chaitanya Eye Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram.
• The Cabinet decided to provide financial assistance to the families of those who died in the Kaithapoyil accident at Kozhikode - Wayanad National Highway. The families of adults will be given Rs 1 lakh each while those of the children will be given Rs 2 lakh each.
• Financial aid of Rs 1 lakh each to the families of four who died at Banasura Sagar dam, Wayanad.