Committee on Allowances submits report, keeps HRA at 30 per cent

The Committee on Allowances, headed by Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa, has submitted its report on higher allowances, under the 7th Pay Commission recommendations, to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The Committee on Allowances has suggested to keep the house rent allowance (HRA) as it was under the 6th Pay Commission–at 30 per cent, 20 per cent, and 10 per cent respectively.

“The Committee on Allowances has already submitted the report on higher allowance to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The final decision on allowance will be taken by the end of this month or in the next meeting scheduled on March 23,” said the Zee Business report, quoting sources. Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal, in his written reply to Lok Sabha on March 10 about the 7th Pay Commission, had said the ‘Committee on Allowance’ hasn’t submitted its report.

While the government is yet to approved the report of the Committee on Allowance, a senior Finance Ministry official had said the central government employees will start receiving higher allowance according to 7th Pay Commission recommendations from April 1.

Central government employees have been protesting against the abolition of 51 allowances and subsuming of 37 others out of 196 allowances, recommended by the 7th Pay Commission. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley then formed the Committee on Allowance to look into the provision of allowances other than dearness allowance under the 7th Pay Commission recommendations.

Central government employees are currently receiving all allowances except dearness allowance, according to the 6th Pay Commission recommendations. The National Joint Council of Action (NJCA), which has been negotiating with Centre over the 7th Pay Commission report, threatened to launch an agitation if the allowances are not hiked from April 1.