7th Pay Commission: Update on revised allowance structure to be announced next week

New Delhi: The wait for update on revised allowance structure has been extended by a week, as per media reports.

Reports say that the Central government employees will have to wait next week to get the update on higher allowances recommended by the 7th Pay Commission.

The Empowered Committee of Secretaries (E-CoS) will purportedly meet next week before presenting the report to the Union Cabinet.

The Lavasa Committee on April 28 suggested modifications in some allowances applicable universally to all employees and also for those in specific categories, including railways and defence, after examining the 7th Pay Commission recommendations.

Last month, the Union Cabinet approved important proposals relating to modifications in the 7th CPC (Central Pay Commission) recommendations on pay and pensionary benefits in the course of their implementation.

The benefit of the proposed modifications will be available with effect from 1st January, 2016, i.e., the date of implementation of 7th CPC recommendations. With the increase approved by the Cabinet, the annual pension bill alone of the Central Government is likely to be Rs 1,76,071 crore.

There are about 47 lakh central government employees.

While recommendations of the CPC on pay and pension were implemented with the approval of the Cabinet, allowances continued to be paid at old rates.

The CPC had recommended that of a total of 196 allowances, 52 be abolished altogether and 36 be abolished as separate identities by subsuming them in another allowance.