Government employees get big salary hikes in Karnataka ahead of assembly elections 2018

The hike in salaries of state government employees comes months ahead of the Karnataka Assembly Elections 2018.

Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government is all set to dole out big fat hikes to its employees ahead of assembly elections 2018. At an additional burden of Rs 10,508 crore per year, the Sixth State Pay Commission has recommended a 30 per cent hike to state government employees.

The implementation will benefit not just 5.20 lakh state government employees but also 73,000 employees of aided educational institutions, local bodies and non-teaching staff of colleges and universities. The commission's recommendation to increase the pension of retired state government employees by 30 per cent is expected to benefit 5.73 lakh families of pensioners. The pay hike to woo state government employees is expected to be a gamechanger for the Congress ahead of the Karnataka Assembly Elections 2018.

The first volume of the Sixth State Pay Commission report was filed by chairman M R Srinivasmurthy, IAS (Retired) on Wednesday. The recommendations include a revised minimum pay scale of Rs 17,000 and maximum scale of Rs 1,50,600 plus allowances. The revised minimum pension is Rs 8,500 with the upper limit of Rs 75,300 per month. The commission has recommended an upper limit of Rs 45,180 per month for family pension.

The state government has decided to implement the commission's recommendations of the pay hike, revised salaries and pensions as well as pay scale post a cabinet meet. The recommendations will be notionally effective from July 1, 2017, which means that state government employees will receive benefits of the Sixth State Pay Commission recommendations from July last year. Employees will receive financial benefits from April 1, 2018.

Karnataka's Sixth State Pay Commission recommendations

• 30 per cent hike in salaries of employees and pensions of retired staff
• Additional 45.25 per cent dearness allowance to be added to hike on basic salary payable from July 1, 2017.
• Minimum pay scale of Rs 17,000, minimum pension of Rs 8,500
• Age of retirement for government employees to remain at 60 years
• Minimum qualification service for voluntary retirement to be reduced to 10 years
• Eligibility to receive full pension reduced to 30 years from present 33 years
• House rent allowance rate: revised to 24 per cent, 16 per cent and 8 per cent of basic salary
• Maximum limit of Death-cum-Retirement Gratuity proposed to be increased to Rs 20 lakh
• Additional pension for pensioners aged over 80 years at the rate of 20 per cent for those between ages 80 and 85, 30 per cent for those between 85 and 90, 40 per cent for those between 90 and 95, 50 per cent for those between 95 and 100 and 100 per cent additional pension for those aged above 100 years.
• Extension of medical reimbursement benefit to retired employees and families of pensioners at a cost of Rs 500 crore per year
• Increase in City Compensatory allowance, travelling allowance, uniform allowance and special allowance
• Increase in subsidy to purchase motorized or mechanical vehicle for differently-abled employees upto Rs 40,000
• Educational allowance for children of physically challenged staff to be hiked to Rs 1000 per child per month

The recommendations will not be applicable to staff of All India Services and judicial officers drawing NJPC pay scale. It is also not applicable to teaching staff drawing UGC/AICTE pay scales. Allowances will be according to the state's revised rates. This pay hike is the eleventh such in Karnataka. The state government had revised salaries for its employees last in 2012.

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