The Hindu : Cabinet nod for release of pensioners' DA

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 18, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Cabinet nod for release of pensioners' DA

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, FEB. 17. Conceding the long-pending demand of pensioners, the State Cabinet on Tuesday sanctioned release of five instalments of dearness allowance to retired Government employees due since July 1, 2001. This will involve a financial commitment of Rs. 356 crores.

In what is termed `the last Cabinet meeting before the election schedule,' the Information Minister, S. Chandramohan Reddy, briefing reporters later, said the arrears of January and February of 2004 would be paid along with the March pension payable in April, while the balance of arrears would be cleared in two annual instalments (financial years of 2004-05 and 2005-06). This will benefit 4.5 lakh pensioners.

The Cabinet also cleared quite a few other election-eve sops, notable among them being sanction of Rs. 116.4 crores toward half of interim relief to the Singareni staff due from July 1, 2001, to December 31, 2003, pending finalisation of proposals by the Joint Bipartite Committee on Coal Industry at the national level. Asked whether all this had not been with an eye on elections, the Minister said the pensioners had made umpteen representations on their woes and "ours is a responsible Government."

The Cabinet also sanctioned Rs. 10 crores under minorities' welfare toward repair of old mosques and churches in the State. Collectors were vested with powers for the first time to issue NOCs for construction of masjids on wakf and masjid lands.

The Minister said the meeting gave the nod for allowing a 5 per cent interest rebate on all the loans taken by the two lakh Rythu Mitra clubs in the State from commercial, cooperative, urban and grameena banks, a facility allowed so far to cooperative loans, and 4 per cent rebate similarly on the loans taken by CMEY groups with an yearly commitment of Rs. 5 crores.

It was resolved to immediately fill the 81 supernumerary posts through Collectors "within a week," with dependents of those who were killed in extremist violence.

Further, the decks for bringing 25,000 more widows under the National Family Benefit Fund Scheme were cleared with the sanction of Rs. 12.5 crores, out of which each would get Rs. 5,000.

Also approved were proposals to amend the Registration Act of 1908 to enable registration of immovable properties "anywhere in the State" and release of Rs. 100 crores to the APSRTC to meet 50 per cent of the burden on account of concessions given to different groups.

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