GUWAHATI, Oct 15 – The Sixth Pay Commission of the State submitted its final report to Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi at a function held at the Khanapara Administrative Staff College here this evening, said an official press release. However, the recommendations of the Commission haven’t been made public by the Government as yet.

Addressing the function, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said that the Government would soon take a decision on the report of the Commission. He also expressed the hope that the report of the Commission would be able to meet the expectation of the officers and employees of the State.

Chairman of the Commission Bhaskar Barua said that the Commission had fulfilled the responsibility vested in it with much pleasure. He also greeted the employees on the eve of the Diwali festival.

The function conducted by Principal Secretary of the Finance Department H S Das, was also attended by Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chief Secretary Prafulla Chandra Sarma, Pay Commission members Santikam Hazarika and Surendra Mohan Deka, several senior bureaucrats and Deputy Commissioners of the districts, among others.

It needs mention here that the Commission has taken one-year, four-months and fifteen days to submit its final report. The Commission was constituted on May 30, 2008. It was initially asked to submit its final report within one year’s time. But its term was extended later by four months and fifteen days in phases.

The failure of the Commission to submit its final report within the stipulated time-frame had evoked sharp reactions among the employees and the Sadou Assam Karmachari Parishad (SAKP) had to take recourse to state-wide protest programmes to register its resentment over the failure of the Commission to go by the set time-frame.

Faced with the SAKP pressure, the State Government had to announce an interim benefit to the tune of 15 per cent to the officers and employees on August 29 last.

Meanwhile, the SAKP has said in a press release that though it is not aware of the recommendations of the Commission, it is hopeful that the Commission has paid attention to the expectations of the officers and employees. It has also made an appeal to the State Government to fix the pay scales of the officers and employees at par with the Central Government officers and employees expeditiously giving effect to the new scales from January 1, 2006.

The assurance of the State Government that it would pay its officers and employees at par with the Central Government officers and employees, has raised the hopes of the officers and employees concerning the recommendations of the Pay Commission.

Source: assamtribune.com