VIJAYAWADA: The State government has decided to cancel free accommodation facilities to the employees of the AP Secretariat, Assembly and HoD offices. It is learnt that the government issued an order making it clear that the free accommodation will be provided only till October 31, 2021. Thereafter, the facility of transit free accommodation will be discontinued and the employees were advised to get their own accommodation from November 1, 2021.
After relocation of the Secretariat, Assembly and HoD offices from Hyderabad to various locations in Krishna and Guntur districts, the AP government provided the free accommodation to the employees. However, several employees are yet to shift their families to Amaravati and are availing the free accommodation.
Though the AP Secretariat Association President and the AP Secretariat Women Employees Welfare Association president requested the government to extend the free transit accommodation to employees/outsourcing staff for one more year — from August 1, 2021 to July 31, 2022 — the government extended the facility for another three months and advised the employees to get their own accommodation from November 1.In fact, the government had decided to discontinue the free accommodation from August 1. A leader of the Secretariat Association said that the government gave the three months extension on their request.
Welcoming the decision of the government, a leader of an employees union said that there is no meaning in continuing the free accommodation for the employees for years. “The government should have discontinued the facility much before. It is ridiculous on the part of the Secretariat and HoD office employees to seek extension of free accommodation year by year. How much time do they need to relocate to Amaravati?” he questioned and felt that the government made a good decision finally. When the government is not in position to pay the wages of the employees on time, steps like this will reduce pressure on the exchequer, he opined.