Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Sunday announced that the state government employees working in different departments prior to 3 January, 2022 and were deprived of higher pay scale would be given higher scale at par with other employees on completion of two year’s tenure of regular service.

He also announced a higher pay scale to the Junior Office Assistants (IT) on completion of two years regular service during a function organised by the HP Non-Gazetted Employees Federation in Shimla.

Thakur said the employees have always given full support and contribution to the state government and they have been playing an important role in the execution of the policies and schemes of the government up to the ground level.

He appreciated the role played by the employees’ especially frontline workers in the battle against the pandemic.

The present state government has always given priority for ensuring the welfare of its employees and has maintained cordial relations with them. The government has ensured that different categories of employees get their due benefits and better facilities. Despite Covid-19 crisis lasting for almost two years, the state government ensured that its employees did not face any inconvenience and they were given full salary, pension and other benefits, the CM said.

Thakur stated that most of the government employees in the state have been given revised pay scales and on an average, every employee has got the benefit of 12 to 15 per cent salary hike. There has also been an increase in the pension of about 1.50 lakh pensioners of the state. The financial benefits of Rs 7,801 crore have been given to state government employees and pensioners from the year 2018 to 2022. The pensioners who retired before 2016 are getting the benefit of 15 to 20 per cent increase in the pension while around 40 thousand pensioners who retired after 2016 would be benefitted soon.

Besides the daily wages was Rs 210 in the year 2017 which has been increased by the present state government to Rs 350. Similarly, 12 per cent interim relief annually has been provided to government employees and pensioners during the present government’s tenure. The Himachal government has provided Dearness Allowance to its employees and pensioners on the lines of Punjab and Central governments from the due date. The Punjab government has given only 5 per cent interim relief to the employees while the Himachal government has provided 21 per cent interim relief to its employees.

Out of the total interim relief amount given to the employees and pensioners amounting to about Rs 6,500 crore, Rs 3,500 crore has been paid during the tenure of our government, added the Chief Minister.

He further stated that the state government has increased the government contribution for NPS employees from 10 per cent to 14 per cent benefitting more than one lakh employees. The NPS employees are being given the benefits of retirement and death gratuity at par with employees falling under the old pension scheme. The government has also increased the upper limit of death gratuity from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.

The state government has also increased the honorarium of para-workers working in various departments.

Thakur assured the employees that the state government would continue to consider their legitimate demands sympathetically and their issues would be resolved on priority basis.