Sir,
According to the new enhanced rates every legislator is entitled to get Rs 1.6 lakhs PM. The salary of the Chief Minister has been raised from Rs 45000 to Rs 70000, Cabinet Minister from Rs 40000 to Rs 65000 and that of Minister of state from Rs 35000 to 60000. The pension of the ex. MLAs and that of MLCs has been doubled from Rs 28000 to Rs 50000 and their medical allowances from Rs 5000 to Rs 10000 respectively. In addition to the salary the legislators are entitled to TA/DA, free accommodation, vehicles, petrol, telephones and the free air travel in business class etc. According to the CAG report, tabled in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly 55 Legislators including Ministers, who had been allotted Government accommodation at Jammu and Srinagar cities are also occupying accommodation at MLA hostels at Jammu and Srinagar. According to the report as many as 146 Government accommodations of various categories are under the occupation of the families of the legislators and retired persons. It is worth mentioning here that retaining the Government accommodation, by both sitting as well as Ex MPs, powerful politicians with influence in the parlor of power have become their prerogative since Independence.
MLAs and MLCs are the representatives of the people, mouthpiece of public grievances, agents of development and not the monarchs of any principality. They should become assets not the liability for the state they belong to. The pay, perks and facilities they get, comes from the taxes which a poor man pays on purchasing match boxes, bundle of beeries, pinch of salt and items of his need.
They should visualize the pain and agony of the poor instead of grinding about their own axis. no doubt Acche din to zaroor aa gaye magar aam aadmi ke nahin.
Yours etc…
Shiv Kumar Padha
Basohl
II
Sir,
This pertains to the bumper hike in the salaries of our Legislators- MLAs and MLCs. The Government has sufficient money for them but not for the 61,000 daily wagers of the State.
These daily wagers are without pay for the last several months, and nobody bothers about them. What an irony!
Yours etc…
Jugal Gupta, Jammu
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