Revanth to Give DAs to Employees as Diwali Gift

Hyderabad: Nearly six lakh state government employees and pensioners are set to receive one or two dearness allowances (DA) instalments as a Diwali gift. This was promised by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy during a meeting with leaders of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of employees and pensioners unions on Thursday. The official announcement is likely to be made on Friday.

During the meeting, the JAC leaders presented 51 demands to the Chief Minister, seeking immediate attention to six critical issues, including the payment of DA arrears. Among these pending DAs, three were carried over from the BRS government, while two have accumulated since the Congress took office in December 2023.

The total owed DA stands at 17 per cent, with each one per cent adding a financial burden of Rs.250 crore per month on the state exchequer.

In response to the employees’ concerns, Revanth Reddy expressed the government's intent to resolve these issues, starting with the DA arrears. He also announced the setting up of a Cabinet sub-committee, to be chaired by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, to address employees' grievances.

Other members of the sub-committee include ministers D. Sridhar Babu and Ponnam Prabhakar, with K. Keshava Rao, government adviser, serving as a special invitee.

The sub-committee plans to hold department-wise meetings after Diwali, to systematically address the concerns. Revanth Reddy stressed that this meeting was a significant first step in resolving long-standing employee grievances, reassuring workers that the government is ready to address their issues.

The meeting took place against the backdrop of financial stress inherited from the previous BRS regime. The Congress government is grappling with a massive debt of nearly Rs.7 lakh crore, requiring daily payments of Rs.210 crore in interest and principal to various financial institutions. This debt burden has impacted the state's ability to quickly meet employees' demands.

Additionally, the JAC stressed the need to release Rs.4,000 crore in pending arrears, largely due to the previous government's failure to reimburse medical bills, GPF and insurance advances, and gratuities. While the total arrears amount to Rs.6,000 crore, the Congress government has so far released Rs.2,000 crore over the past 10 months. Other major demands include implementing the new Pay Revision Commission (PRC) scales, which has been delayed since July 2023, and revising rates under the Employees Health Scheme.

The JAC had issued an ultimatum, demanding that the Congress government resolve their key issues by October 21, failing which they threatened to begin an agitation from November 2. With no immediate response from the government by the deadline, the JAC convened on October 22 and announced its decision to launch protests from November 2. This led to an urgent meeting called by CM Revanth on Thursday to address the brewing discontent.

Employee union leaders V. Latchi Reddy and G. Sthita Prajna expressed satisfaction after the meeting, stating that the discussions were positive. "The Chief Minister acknowledged the state's financial challenges due to the BRS regime's debt. He agreed to clear DA arrears and promised an announcement on Friday," said Latchi Reddy.

Sthita Prajna also noted that the Chief Minister responded favourably to their demand for restoring the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), which was a key promise in the Congress election manifesto. The JAC had been pressing for the abolition of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) in favour of OPS, citing the example of Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh, where OPS has already been implemented.

The Ctate cabinet is scheduled to meet on Saturday to discuss, among other things, the sub-committee's report on GO 317, which relates to employee transfers that were handled "unscientifically" by the previous BRS government. The JAC is pushing for the government to revert the transfer policy.