7th Pay Commission latest news: Why Rajnath Singh’s statement is a positive development

New Delhi, Oct 12: For those awaiting good news regarding the 7th Pay Commission, there could be a ray of hope.

The statement by Rajnath Singh, which may not be applicable to all the employees has given a ray of hope. During a meeting of Union Home Minister, Rajnath Singh and All India Railwaymen's Federation general secretary Shivgopal Mishra, there were some positive developments.

Mishra had appraised Singh about their demands and also reminded him of the assurance made earlier as a result of which the nationwide strike was withdrawn. The situation would not aggravate and the demands would be considered, Singh assured Mishra.

Ray of hope

The assurance by Singh may be limited to one sector of the employees, but it can be considered as a ray of hope for all the rest of the Central Government employees, who have been waiting for good news regarding the 7th Pay Commission. This would mean that the government is not averse to the thought of looking into the demands.

In a phased manner:

However CG employees should not expect a sudden announcement from the government. There are various factors that are being looked into and the benefits would come in a phased manner. CG employees could start getting some good news by the end of November.

LARSGESS

The Liberalised Active Retirement Scheme for Guaranteed Employment for Safety Staff which was launched in 2004 was also under discussion during the meeting between Singh and Mishra. The scheme was launched to give jobs to children of employees in the lower tier, drivers and hangman in return for voluntary retirement. The scheme was put on hold following an order by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The matter is under challenge before the Supreme Court of India now.

Minimum pay hike:

The CG employees have been demanding a minimum pay hike of Rs 26,000 as opposed to the Rs 18,000 recommended by the 7th Pay Commission. However CG employees should be advised not to expect Rs 26,000. In case the government goes ahead with the demand to increase the basic minimum pay, then it would be at Rs 20,000.