Bengal DA crisis: Bengal government approaches SC seeking 6 months more to clear 25 per cent dues

Kolkata, June 27 (IANS) The West Bengal government on Friday filed a petition at the Supreme Court seeking six months of additional time for paying 25 per cent dearness allowance dues for current and retired state government employees as directed by the apex court last month.

The deadline for crediting the 25 per cent dearness allowance arrears to the accounts of the current and retired employees is ending on Friday at midnight.

The actual deadline is midnight on June 29. However, considering that June 28 and June 29 are state government holidays, the deadline will be midnight on June 27.

The state government, in its plea to the apex court, has argued that six months of additional time was required, considering the per cent financial status of the state exchequer. At the same time, it also appealed to the apex court for review of the earlier order for payment of the dearness allowance dues.

The United Forum of State Government Employees, the umbrella body of state government employees spearheading the movement on the issue, had claimed that this move by the state government, in a way, amounts to contempt of court and violation of the earlier order of the apex court.

"The state government should honour the earlier order of the Supreme Court. The state government is wasting money like anything behind wasteful expenditures like festivals and fares. But when it comes to payment of legitimate dues to its employees, the state government always puts forward the excuse of a fund crunch," said a forum representative.

The forum will announce its detailed plans for the next course of action in the matter on Saturday morning.

"The state government employees, both current and retired, have shown enough patience. They will be holding patience till Saturday morning. We are not disclosing our detailed plans right now. All I can now say is that if the state government does not honour the apex court order, it would be heading a two-pronged challenge — legal and movement on the streets," Forum convener, Bhaskar Ghosh, said on Friday.

Currently, the West Bengal government employees receive dearness allowances at the rate of just 18 per cent, as against 55 per cent received by their counterparts in the Union government and even many other state governments.

Payment of 25 per cent of pending dues is expected to cost the state exchequer around Rs 12,000 crore. The state Finance Department employees apprehend that this drain-out might impact some monthly payments under different welfare schemes run by the state government.

--IANS

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