Srinagar, Mar 13: The Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday approved a series of key proposals, including revision of allowances for legislators and ministers, a hike in passenger vehicle fares and creation of new faculty posts in Government Medical Colleges of Jammu and Srinagar.
The decisions were taken during the Cabinet meeting held at the Civil Secretariat here, and the proposals will now be forwarded to the Lieutenant Governor for final approval.
Among the major decisions, the Cabinet cleared amendments to several rules governing allowances and facilities for elected representatives and ministers. The revisions relate to travelling allowance (TA), daily allowance, medical facilities and other benefits admissible to Members of the Legislative Assembly, the Leader of Opposition, Presiding Officers, including the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, as well as Ministers and Ministers of State.
Amendments were approved in multiple rules, including the TA Rules, Ministers and Ministers of State (Motor Car Advance and Allowances) Rules, Leader of Opposition in Legislature (Allowances, Medical and Other Facilities) Rules, and provisions related to housing loans and medical facilities for ministers and presiding officers.
The changes will lead to an increase in various allowances, such as medical allowance for the Leader of Opposition, motor car advances and allowances for ministers, besides enhanced TA and improved medical facilities for MLAs.The Finance Department had already accorded concurrence to the proposals.
The Cabinet also approved a proposal from the Transport Department to revise passenger fares for commercial vehicles.
As per the decision, fares for all categories of passenger vehicles will increase by 18 per cent over the existing rates. The Government also approved the fixation of fares for e-rickshaws and e-autos, setting the rate for e-rickshaws at Rs 15 per kilometre, while fares for e-autos have been fixed at Rs 25 for the first kilometre and Rs 20 for every subsequent kilometre.
Officials said the last revision of passenger fares in the Union Territory was notified in 2021. While transport associations had demanded a fare hike of 35 to 40 per cent, the Fare Revision Committee recommended an increase of 18 per cent after assessing operational costs and the likely impact on commuters.
In another decision, the Cabinet approved the creation of 136 faculty posts in Government Medical College Jammu and Government Medical College Srinagar for the implementation of the Phase-II three-tier faculty structure in line with National Medical Commission norms.
The newly sanctioned posts include 27 Professors and 109 Associate Professors. Of these, 10 Professor posts will be created in GMC Jammu and 17 in GMC Srinagar. Similarly, 36 Associate Professors will be posted in GMC Jammu, while 73 posts will be created in GMC Srinagar.
Out of the total 136 posts, 46 will be for GMC Jammu and 90 for GMC Srinagar. The Finance Department has already cleared the proposal, which is expected to involve an annual financial implication of about Rs 17 crore. The move is also expected to facilitate the addition of 158 postgraduate seats in various medical disciplines.
The Cabinet also approved Jammu and Kashmir’s consent to allow the Union Territory of Ladakh to use the services of the Jammu and Kashmir Real Estate Appellate Tribunal as its Real Estate Appellate Tribunal.
