The Delhi government has informed the Delhi High Court that it has released ₹98.35 crore to North Delhi Municipal Corporation for paying salaries to 9,000 teachers for the month of July and August.
The Delhi government also said it has permitted the North body to utilise the unspent balance of ₹1,807.10 lakh of previous year for the purpose of paying salaries of the teachers.
The submission was made on a public interest litigation (PIL) initiated by the high court after hearing the petition filed on behalf of North body teachers seeking direction to the authorities to pay the salaries which were due since March, when the nationwide lockdown was imposed.
In view of the payment of ₹98.35 crore made by the Delhi government, the HC said, “North Corporation shall ensure that salaries of the teachers, which as we understand, are due and payable from the month of May, 2020 onwards, shall be released at the earliest”.
“Besides the grant-in-aid received from the Delhi government, North body shall also chip in by making funds available for paying the salaries of teachers teaching in schools being run by it,” the court said asking the corporation to file a fresh status report within two weeks. The HC has posted the case for further hearing on September 1.
Earlier, the court was informed by the corporation that it had paid salaries to all 9,000 teachers till March and 5,406 teachers, who are put on COVID-19 duty, have been given their dues for April.
The North body had blamed the Delhi government for not releasing Grant-In-Aid to the civic body due to which it is unable to pay the salaries of its employees.
The Delhi government had said that the grant-in-aid payable by it to the North bidy for release of salaries to its teachers was ₹147 crore for the first quarter, April to June, and it has been released in three monthly tranches.
