As the deadline to furnish a dissent note to join the salary challenge mooted for employees and teachers to mop up resources for rebuilding the flood-battered zones of the State expired on Saturday, the government claims to have received a positive response from about 80% of the employees.
The proposal seeking donation of a month’s salary in 10 monthly instalments was expected to yield ₹3,800 crore. Specific guidelines were laid for the donation, but the proposal on dissent note stirred a hornet’s nest with the Opposition United Democratic Front accusing the government of taking the salary by coercion.
But the government clarified that out of the ₹30,000 crore needed for rebuilding infrastructure, ₹10,000 crore was targeted to be realised through revenue income and the contribution through the salary challenge constituted a lion’s share, ₹ 3,800 crore. The State has 5.34 lakh government employees and almost an equal number of pensioners.
Aided school teachers
While exuding confidence about the response from employees, the government seems to be a bit concerned about the participation of teachers, especially from the aided sector. About 698 of the 5,000 Secretariat employees are understood to have furnished dissent note till Saturday, but the service organisations affiliated to the Opposition claimed that 1,200 expressed their dissent. About 99% employees affiliated to unions owing allegiance to the Left Democratic Front voluntarily joined the drive.
Finance Department sources told The Hindu that the fall in tax collection, indecision on the part of the Centre in conceding to the demand for raising the State’s borrowing limit from the current 3% to 4.5% of the gross State domestic product (GSDP), and a host of other factors that have mounted a heavy stress on the State’s resources and also the urgency to restore normalcy in 11 districts that bore the brunt of the monsoon fury were what prompted the government to explore all options, including the salary challenge.
Duty-bound
Moreover, disbursal of salary and pension constituted a large chunk of the State’s committed expenditure. In this context, employees and pensioners too should be made share the pains of the flood victims, sources said.
