Location of temporary capital upsets Andhra Pradesh government officials

Hyderabad: AP government employees are upset that they are being shifted to a temporary capital in a rural area, instead of in nearby Vijayawada or Guntur. They will get only 12 per cent as house rent allowance in the temporary capital area, as compared to 30 per cent in Hyderabad.

HRA is paid to employees according to the population of they area where they work. The HRA for staff at Vijayawada and Guntur is 20 per cent. In smaller towns, the HRA falls to 12 per cent. On being shifted to the temporary capital, they lose out heavily on HRA.

The AP government has got a lucky break with February beginning on a Sunday: It now gets two more days to pay salaries. Under the new rule, salaries are paid on the first of the month recently. On Sunday, the government will get Rs 1,100 crore from the Centre, helping it foot the Rs 2,700 crore pay bill.