NEW DELHI: Amidst all the rancour, the Parliament session may well end with a hefty hike in MPs’ salaries — Rs one lakh per month — as the approval file from Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, it seems, has landed in the PM’s Office.
The government has to shell out over Rs 250 crore per year for the hike in salaries of MPs, who legislate on their own pay. And this time, it’s going to be a 100 per cent hike from Rs 50,000 to Rs lakh. The DA may be cut out which may lead to some heartburn.
A parliamentary panel report recommending the pay hike was approved by Jaitley and submitted to the PMO late Thursday evening. The panel not only recommended hike in salary but also doubling of constituency allowance and secretarial assistance allowance from Rs 45,000 to Rs 90,000. Even furniture allowance may go up to a substantial Rs 1,50,000. The parliamentary panel report had also recommended that all MPs be given broadband BSNL connection of Rs 1,700 per month, to be installed at the MP’s official residence in his constituency.
BSNL will create a Wifi zone for MPs with a range of 500 metres. This too has been approved by the FM. The MP pay panel headed by BJP leader Yogi Adityanath also recommended around 75 per cent raise in pensions and an automatic mechanism for salary hike for MPs. Consequently, the pension for former MPs has been increased from Rs 20,000 to Rs 35,000.