7th pay commission: Good news for 50 lakh employees likely to come in August

Around 50 lakh Central government are waiting for much awaited hike in basic salary beyond the recommendations of the Seventh Pay commission. However, if reports that are doing rounds lately are something to go by then the good news regarding salary hike might come on August 15. It is also to be noted that minister of State for Finance, P. Radhakrishnan, had cleared earlier that currently the government has no plans to increase the minimum salary beyond the seventh pay recommendations. 

At present, the Central government employees are getting basic pay according to the fitment formula of 2.57 of the basic pay.  

Fitment factor is a figure used by 7th CPC with which the basic pay in 6th CPC regime (i.e Pay in Pay band + Grade pay) is multiplied in order to fix basic pay in revised pay structure (i.e 7th CPC).

According to a Sen Times report, PM Narendra Modi might announce the hike in minimum pay and fitment factor beyond the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission on August 15. “The two announcements that Prime Minister Modi is likely to make in his speech from Red Fort on 15 August, the Independence Day for central government employees are an increase of pay and the raising retirement age to 62 years from 60,” a government official was quoted as saying in the report.

The employees were demanding to raise the minimum basic pay to Rs 26,000 instead of Rs 18,000, the amount seventh pay commissionrecommended. 

Not only this, the report also claimed that following the footsteps of the Madhya Pradesh government, the Centre is also likely to increase the retirement age of the central government employees from 60 to 62 years.

“Taking a leaf from Chouhan ahead of general elections next year, The BJP-led central government is mulling to implement the pay hike for central government employees,” a senior government official told the Sen Times. 

Salary hike happening or not?

Well to answer that question, at present, various conflicting reports have been surfaced claiming that despite of the fact that government had denied any pay hike, salary hike and increase in fitment factor for employees upto the pay matrix level 5 would happen. 

Quoting financial ministry sources, the Sen Times report stated the government is ready to raise minimum pay and fitment factor beyond the recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission for employees upto the pay matrix level 5.