West Bengal approves 6th pay panel recommendations

The directions will be implemented from January 1, 2020

The West Bengal Cabinet on Monday approved recommendations of the Sixth Pay commission and said it will be implemented from January 1 next year.

In some cases, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee approved hikes more than what was suggested by the pay panel, state Finance Minister Amit Mitra said adding that no arrear would be paid.

"The Cabinet today approved recommendations of the Pay Commission and it will be effective from January 1, 2020. The state government will be paying its employees a notional effect calculated from 2016," the finance minister told reporters.

The dearness allowance (DA) will be merged with the basic pay and the grade pay, he said adding that if an employee's current basic pay is Rs 100, it will become Rs 280.90 after implementation of the pay panel recommendations.

To a question, Mitra said the state government will not pay any arrear.

The gratuity will be doubled from Rs 6 lakhs to Rs 12 lakhs, Rs 2 lakhs more than what the Sixth Pay Commission recommended, he said.

The House Rent Allowance has been raised from current Rs 6,000 to Rs 12,000 following the direction from the chief minister, while the recommended amount was Rs 10,500, he said.

The implementation of the pay panel recommendations is likely to cost the state exchequer about Rs 10,000 crore annually, a source at the state finance department said.

The Sixth Pay Commission was formed on November 27, 2015, months before the 2016 assembly election, to restructure the salaries of the state government employees.

The panel, which was headed by Prof Abhirup Sarkar, was scheduled to submit its report within six months. However, it got periodic extensions.

The chief minister on September 13 said she received the panel's report and her government is likely to implement it from January 1, 2020.