The State government has finally given up its decision to deduct one month’s salary of government employees and teachers to overcome the financial crisis induced by COVID-19 pandemic.
A Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday decided to merge the six-days’ salary deducted for five months from April to August this year in the Provident Fund (PF) on April 1, 2021.
The government will give interest as per PF rules for the amount being merged, but will allow withdrawal of the same amount only after June 1, 2021. For pensioners and those who do not have a PF account, the deducted salary (20% of the monthly salary) will be given in equal instalments from June 1, 2021.
The State which needs ₹2,500 crore to pay the monthly salary of employees cannot afford another ₹2,500 crore and hence the decision to merge the deducted salary in the PF account, a communication from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.
The decision comes in the wake of the directive of the CPI(M) State secretariat to Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac in view of the forthcoming elections to the local bodies, and the announcement of the pro-UDF unions that they would seek legal measures and resort to agitation if the government went ahead with the salary cut.
The chances of getting ₹9,006 crore as Goods and Service Tax (GST) compensation from the Centre also prompted the decision.
