Andhra Pradesh: DDOs directed to process wage bills to remit by Feb. 1

Vijayawada: The AP finance department has directed the drawal and disbursal officers and officials from the treasury, pay and accounts to prepare bills for wages and pensions as per the revised scales of pay and ensure these are remitted to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries by Feb. 1.

The state government employees, teachers and pensioners are unwilling to accept the revised scales of pay as per the 11th pay revision commission recommendations. They alleged that their wages had come down as per the 11th PRC recommendations.

While the DDOs and officials from treasury and P and A, were refusing to process the wage and pension bills, the AP finance department issued a circular on Thursday, directing them to process the bills immediately for remittance of wages and pensions without any delay.

The finance department has warned of disciplinary action if they failed to comply with the order.

Meanwhile, the PRC Struggle Committee leaders gave a call for ‘Chalo Vijayawada’ on Feb. 3 to express their protest over the implementation of the 11th PRC recommendations to the state government employees and pensioners. AP JAC chairman Srinivasa Rao said they asked the state government to pay the old wages for the month of January, release the Ashutosh Mishra Committee report on PRC and revoke the GOs issued on the revised scales of pay.

He said that if the government was willing to accept their three demands, they would take part in the talks with the ministers’ committee.

APJAC Amaravati chairman Venkateswarlu said the state government did not respond to their demands and was instead misleading the people and the employees that the employee leaders have accepted an invite to attend talks with the government. “We met government adviser Sajjala Ramakrishna several times and held discussions on the 40 points.”  

How would the government invite new unions for talks even as nine employees’ unions were involved in holding talks with the government, he asked.

Treasury employees were also a part of government employees, he said, and added that as part of their action plan, they were not processing the bills. He cautioned the government that if any action was initiated against them, it would be tantamount to a provocation.

AP government employees association president Suryanarayana asked whether the state government was intending to implement its PRC or the Centre’s PRC and said this must be clarified by the ministers’ committee. He asked how pay could be fixed without the PRC report and sought the state government’s intervention to resolve the issue amicably.

AP government adviser Sajjala Ramakrishna said the state government was ready to hold talks with the employee JAC leaders and the ministers’ committee was waiting for their arrival at the Secretariat. If the JAC leaders come up with their issues, the committee would take these to the notice of the chief minister in order to resolve them, he said.

He said if the treasury employees flouted the government order on  processing of the wage bills, it would be considered as indiscipline. He reiterated his appeal to the employee leaders to attend talks to resolve the issues on PRC.