7th Pay Commission: Latest news on government employees salaries, from protest before Parliament to salary hike

7th Pay Commission latest news have been coming in fast and furious as the April 1 deadline nears for implementation of salary hike order. Whether that will be according to fitment factor of 3.00 times, as offered by government, or 3.68 times, as demanded by government employees unions, is still undecided and to this has been added another factor, which is of a protest. According to latest reports, a strike was held yesterday to protest against the 7th Pay Commission report recommendation and also NPS. On the whole, there is no crisis as yet as all concerned have looked to ensure that no extreme positions are taken that could lead to a fallout. What happens tomorrow on the streets, however, is uncertain. So, check out here, 7th Pay Commission latest news and developments:

1. Salaries of government servants are set to rise and that too at a rate higher than the one recommended by 7th Pay Commission report panel. The 7th CPC committee had recommended a hike of 2.57 times basic salary and there is all likelihood of this being raised to 3.00 times. This is not however, acceptable to the staff and the reason cited is that the lifestyle they are used to will not be maintained at this level of pay hike.

2. Government in a dilemma over how to go about the issue to ensure there is no impact on government work. The dilemma has acquired urgency as the Punjab National Bank and other bank scams and the high bank NPAs have put the exchequer in a position where showering pay hikes at high levels is not possible. However, FM Arun Jaitley had said in Rajya Sabha that he would hike pay of government servants over and above the recommendations of 7th CPC panel.

3.7th Pay Commission linked salary hike to go into effect in April. The deadline has been set and there is most probably no way back on the hike being effected from the due date.

4. Railway employees unions held a protest over the 7th Pay Commission linked issue as well as National Pension System (NPS). First, they want the minimum salary hike to Rs 26,000. Over and above that, they have raised the demand to scrap the NPS. The All India Railwaymen's Federation (AIRF) general secretary Shiv Gopal Mishra said, "Under the National Pension System, the defined minimum pension or family pension is no more guaranteed for those employees who came in government service on or after 2004." On 7th Pay Commission, Mishra said minimum pay at Rs 18,000 that was approved by Centre was not enough and that it should be hiked to Rs 26,000.