7th Pay Commission: Why CG employees would pin hopes on this last Cabinet meeting

New Delhi, Mar 07: Can Central Government employees expect good news on the 7th Pay Commission.

The model code of conduct is all set to be put in place and once that happens there would be no news about an increase in basic minimum pay. However going by the fast paced developments, there could be a ray of hope, but if any announcement needs to be made, it would have to be done fast.

The recent developments include an increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) and Dearness Relief (DR) that was announced for CG employees. Similar announcements were made by the governments of Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan.

While these could be considered as positives, there is no news on the big announcement that the CG employees are awaiting. They would not settle for anything less than a hike in the basic minimum pay. The sops that have been announced, do not make much of a difference to their life style. If any major change were to be effected then it would have to be with regard to the hike in the basic minimum pay.

While sources say that the issue is still under consideration, the problem is with regard to the time. If any announcement has to be made it would now have to be made in a Cabinet meeting. There would be at least 2 Cabinet meetings before the election dates are announced and the CG employees would pin all their hopes on this.

Will the Cabinet take a decision to increase the basic minimum pay? The 7th Pay Commission had recommended the basic minimum pay at Rs 18,000. The CG employees have been demanding Rs 26,000, but in previous discussions it was said that the basic minimum pay at best could be fixed at Rs 21,000.