Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah announces major pay revision for govt employees, wage bill to go up by Rs 20,208 cr per annum
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday announced a major raise in the pay of government employees with retrospective effect from July 1, 2022, after unions threatened to go on an indefinite strike. The revision will increase the basic salary and pension of employees by 58.50%, the chief minister said in a statement in the assembly.
The hike in pay and pensions would mean an additional expenditure of Rs 20,208 crore per annum to the cash-strapped government which has been struggling to meet demands from both government and MLAs who have been lobbying hard for funds for their constituencies. The government has set aside the funds in the budget for 2024-25 to meet the revised pay and pension, the CM said.
The revision is in line with the recommendations of the seventh pay commission, headed by former chief secretary K Sudhakar Rao. The commission, set up on Nov 19,2022, to address the demands for revision of pay, allowance, and pension of government employees, submitted its report on March 24, 2024.
The revised salary, allowances and pension will take effect on August 1, 2024, the CM said.
The government will add 31% of dearness allowance (DA) and a fitment of 27.50% to the basic pay of employees with effect from July 1, 2022. “This will increase the basic salary and pension of the employees by 58.50%. There will be an increase of 32% in house rent allowance,” the CM said in a statement.
As a result of the government decision, the minimum basic pay of employees will increase from Rs. 17,000 to Rs.
