MEDIA REPORT THAT EMPOWERED COMMITTEE
OF SECRETARIES ARE PLANNING TO RECOMMEND 30 PERCENT INCREASE IN BASIC PAY SHALL
ACTUALLY RESULT IN LOWER BENEFIT THAN WHAT THE 7TH CPC RECOMMENDED – M.DORAI
Recent
news appearing in the media that the Empowered Committee of Secretaries are
planning to recommend 30 percent increase in the Basic Pay of Central
Government employees has come as a bolt from the blue as it shall fetch lower
benefit than what has been recommended by the 7th Central Pay Commission.
It
is not clear whether the media is bungling on this issue without confirming the
authenticity of any such move by the Empowered Committee.
Surprisingly
quite a large number of central government employees and the Central Government
Employees Federations/Associations including the media are not aware that 7th
CPC had already recommended a minimum of 32% increase in the basic pay. In fact
the recommendation works out to more than 32% increase in basic pay and may go
even up to 40% in most of the cases, since after multiplying the existing Pay
and Grade Pay by a factor of 2.57 the resulting figure is fitted into the pay
matrix at the next higher slab.
The
following illustration shall make clear the percentage of increase in basic pay
which come to more than 32% of the basic pay:
Under
6th CPC:
Assumed
Pay & G.P Rs.29490+ D.A at 125% Rs.36863= Rs.66,353
Under
7th CPC:
Pay
& G.P Rs.29490 x 2.57 factor = 75,789 to be fixed at the next slab of Rs.
77,700 at level 10 in the Grade Pay of Rs.5400
Fitment
Benefit : Rs.77,700 – Rs.66,353 = Rs.11,347
Percentage
of increase: 38.32% of the basic pay (Rs.11,347 / Rs.29490 =38.47%). The
increase will be only 17.10% if both basic and D.A are to be added.(Rs.11,347 /
66,353 = 17.10%)
The
VII CPC has arrived at a factor of 2.57 for multiplication with the pre-revised
Basic Pay comprising pay in the pay band and grade pay to arrive at new basic
pay thereby including 32% of increase in the basic pay. The VII CPC have
recommended 32% hike uniformly to all the employees as fitment benefit to the
existing pay and grade pay and raised the existing 2.25 factor to 257% or 2.57
factor.
(The
increase come to 14.22% if both the basic pay and D.A. are reckoned. However it
must be noted that none of the pay commissions in the past had projected the
increase by including both basic pay and D.A but had taken only Basic Pay into
account for arriving at the percentage of fitment benefit granted as a
bonanza.)
THE FOLLOWING COMPARISON OF FITMENT
BENEFIT GRANTED BY 6TH CPC AND THE 7TH CPC SHALL GIVE CORRECT PICTURE:
INCREASE
GRANTED UNDER 6TH PAY COMMISSION:
i.
The 6th CPC had granted approximately 40% increase on the maximum of 5th CPC
basic pay scale without taking into account Dearness Pay and D.A as on 1/1/2006
for the purpose of projecting the increase. The fitment benefit of 40% was
distinctly shown as Grade Pay.)
ii.
The increase granted by 6th CPC works out to 21.5% only if D.P and D.A are to
be included in basic pay (40/1.86* factor = 21.5%)
(
*1.86 factor means: 1 is to be taken as 100 which stands for Basic Pay and .86
should be taken as 86% which constitute 50% of Dearness Pay +24% DA on both
Basic Pay and Dearness Pay i.e. Basic Pay100 + D.P 50 =150 x 24% =36% totaling
to 186 or 1.86 factor which the employees had already drawn under 5th CPC Pay
Scale as on 1/1/2006)
INCREASE
RECOMMENDED UNDER 7TH PAY COMMISSION:
i.
The recommended increase in basic pay by 7th CPC without taking into account
125%D.A as on 1/1/2016 come to a minimum of 32% which may go upto 40% of basic
pay comprising Pay in the pay band and Grade Pay depending upon the slab in
which the 2.57 multiplication factor gets fitted into at various levels of pay
in the pay matrix.
ii.
The recommended increase come to only 14.22% if both the basic pay and the 125%
D.A as on 1/1/2016 is taken into account.(32/2.25 =14.22%) In other words
2.57*-2.25** = 32.
(*2.57*
factor means: 1 + 1.25 + 32 =2.57. While 1 stands for 100% Basic Pay comprising
Pay in the pay band and Grade Pay, 1.25 stands for 125% D.A. as on 1/1/2016 and
.32 stands for 32% increase in Basic Pay comprising Pay in the pay band and
grade pay recommended as Fitment Benefit by VII CPC totaling to 257% or 2.57
factor.
(**2.25
means: 1 + 1.25. While 1 stands for 100% of Basic Pay comprising Pay in the pay
band and Grade Pay, 1.25 stands for 125% of D.A. as on 1/1/2016 totalling to
225 or 2.25 factor which the employee was already drawing under 6th CPC Pay
Scale as on 1/1/2016. Added to it is 32% fitment benefit on Basic Pay comprising
Pay and Grade Pay totaling to 257 or 2.57 factor. In other words 2.25 + 32
=2.57 factor).
Thus
it may be seen that if the media report is really true that the Empowered
Committee of Secretaries are planning to revise the increase in fitment benefit
to 30% of the Basic Pay alone, it is highly deplorable as it shall lead to
still lower fitment benefit than what has been proposed by the 7th CPC which
recommended 32% minimum increase in the basic pay by arriving at 2.57 factor.
This 2.57 factor recommended by 7th CPC for multiplication of basic pay shall
come down to 2.55 factor if the Empowered Committee of Secretaries are going to
recommend 30% increase in basic pay alone as under:
Basic
Pay = 100%
D.A.
as on 1/1/2016 =125%
Fitment
Benefit =30%
Total
255% or 2.55 factor
CONCLUSION: It is high time, the
Empowered Committee of Secretaries entrusted with the task of reviewing the
recommendations of VII Central Pay Commission desist from taking any hasty
decision without fully analyzing the ground realities as the result will be
dismal if really such a move is on the anvi. This 32% minimum increase in Basic
Pay comprising Pay in the pay band and Grade Pay recommended by VII CPC which
come to only 14.22% increase if both basic pay and D.A is taken into account,
has caused disgruntlement and anguish among all the central government
employees. If there is going to be an increase of 25 to 30 percent on both
basic pay and grade pay or 50 to 60 percent increase on basic pay alone, then
there can be some contentment among the central government employees who have
been desperately waiting for a pay hike for more than 10 years. What is
required is a concerted and concrete effort to solve the grievances relating to
pay hike, in consultation with the stake holders with a pragmatic approach to
resolve the issues.
M.DORAI
Deputy
Director
ESIC
MODEL HOSPITAL
(Ministry
of Labour, Govt. of India)
Rajajinagar,Bangalore-560010-
is the Author of this article
Source: http://7thcpcupdates.in/
