Kolkata: In a pre-Durga Puja relief for state govt employees and pensioners, the state govt has decided to disburse the Oct salary, wages, stipend, honorarium and pension on Oct 15, well ahead of the usual payment schedule. State govt employees and pensioners will also receive a 38% dearness allowance/dearness relief (DA/DR) on Oct 15, an increase of 20% from the current 18%.According to a memorandum issued by the state finance department on Wednesday, the payment will include the enhanced DA/DR, wherever applicable, in accordance with the department’s Aug 4 order. In that order, the state govt had specified that state govt employees and pensioners/family pensioners shall receive 38% DA/DR of basic pay with effect from Oct 1.Welcoming the govt’s order, Sangrami Joutha Mancha convener Bhaskar Ghosh said around 50,000 casual workers engaged across various state govt departments had not received their remuneration for the past five to six months. “We demand that the state govt also clear their outstanding dues by October 15,” he said.Chief adviser to Nationalist Pensioners’ Association, Manoj Chakraborty, also welcomed the order, describing it as a positive step and a reflection of CM Suvendu Adhikari’s sincerity in implementing his assurance.
