LUCKNOW: With an eye on upcoming crucial Assembly elections due in Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav government doled out a slew of sops, including approval of the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission recommendations to the benefit of around 25 lakh state government employees, teachers and pensioners.
Convening his last cabinet meeting here on Tuesday, just ahead of the Assembly polls, the chief minister and his council of ministers okayed 80-odd proposals to benefit different parts and people of the state.
According to an official release, the recommendation of the 7th pay panel would be enforced in the state from January 17, 2017. This decision would result in an average hike of 15-20 per cent in the income of government employees, it added.
As per the recommendations, the entry-level minimum salary (VI class employees) would become Rs 18,000 while the maximum for Chief Secretary would stand at Rs 2.25 lakh. The decision would lead to phase wise distribution of arrears in installments, the official said.
According to a government spokesperson, a committee, under the chairmanship of retired IAS officer GB Patnaik, was set up to study the 7th Pay Commission recommendations. Patnaik submitted his report to the chief minister last week.
Recommending the state government employees’ salary structure be at par with the Centre, it said finally the salaries would go up by 2.57 times including the salary band and grade pay.
The cabinet also decided to bring a bill on “Vote on Account” in the winter session of the Assembly commencing on December 21. This would take care of state expenses during the first four months of the next year.
Among other prominent proposals which got the Cabinet nod included a raise in the retirement age of specialist doctors placed in various super-speciality hospitals across the state to 70 from 65.
Akhilesh cabinet also okayed the proposal to implement the Samajwadi Health Insurance scheme, which recommends providing free medical treatment up to Rs 2 lakh to critically ill patients.
In order to provide relief to the parents of the police personnel who sacrificed life in the line of duty, the cabinet passed a proposal to award a special grant of Rs 5 lakh from the Chief Minister Discretionary Fund.
Besides, the proposals for special sops to reopen closed cinema halls, construction of a 300-bed Divisional Hospital in Bareilly, and a beautification plan for Ramgarh Taal in Gorakhpur also received the cabinet’s approval.