Rajasthan appoints panel on 7th Pay Commission

The Rajasthan government has appointed a three-member committee, headed by former Chief Secretary D.C. Samant, to study and implement the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission for employees in the State.The committee, which will have two retired Rajasthan Accounts Service officers as its members, has been asked to make an estimate of financial burden on the exchequer and recommend new pay scales for the government employees. It will submit its report to the State government in three months.

Click here for the Govt. Order (In Hindi)

According to official sources, another mandate of the committee is to make suggestions for revising and fixing various allowances payable with different salary slabs. Besides Mr. Samant, the panel's members are D.K. Mittal and M.P. Dixit.

Government Decision On Allowances Likely Soon : NDTV

Unconfirmed sources reveal that the report has already been submitted.
"The government could soon decide on the Ashok Lavasa committee's recommendations over allowances, including HRA or housing rent allowance, related to Seventh Pay Commission, a top official of employee union said. M.Raghavaiah, leader of the staff side at Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM) or the joint body of unions, said the employee representatives held final round of discussions with the members of Ashok Lavasa committee over allowances including HRA on February 22. The joint body of unions has been firm on its demand over HRA and want arrears of all allowances to be paid from January 1, 2016, said Mr Raghavaiah, who is leader of National Federation of Indian Railwaymen (NFIR).

The unions have demanded HRA at the rate of 30 per cent, 20 per cent and 10 per cent. The Seventh Pay Commission had recommended that HRA be paid at the rate of 24 per cent, 16 per cent and 8 per cent of the new Basic Pay, depending on type of cities.

The Seventh Pay Commission had also recommended that the rate of HRA be revised to 27 per cent, 18 per cent and 9 per cent respectively when DA crosses 50 per cent, and further revised to 30 per cent, 20 per cent and 10 per cent when DA crosses 100 per cent."

Click here to view the full report of NDTV

Tamil Nadu forms panel to to extend pay benefit to employees

• The panel comprises finance, home, school education and labour secretaries besides a member-secretary.
• The panel has to submit its report to the government before June 30
• There are 18 lakh govt employees and several lakhs of teachers, pensioners and family pensioners in TN

The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday constituted a five-member committee to implement the 7th Pay Commission recommendations for the benefit of more than 18 lakh government employees and several lakhs of teachers, pensioners and family pensioners.
Click here for the G.O. on Committee formation

"Allowance report to be submitted today" - Union leader

Proving all earlier reports wrong, the committee for higher allowances for central Govt. employees yet to submit it's report.
Now NJCA Chairman Mr Shiv Gopal Mishra predicts the report to be submitted today. As today has been the last date of the extended tenure of the committee, he may have predicted this before media!
Here is the recent media report from India.com published on 21.02.2017
“Government has made no announcement yet. But the report by Committee on allowances would be tabled tomorrow,” Shiv Gopal Mishra said, while speaking exclusively to India.com. On being asked whether the government would make an announcement in relation to the arrears on allowances, he replied, “Let us see what comes out of the report. We are expecting the hike in allowances, as per our demands. We have to wait and see whether the government makes an announcement on arrears as well.”
"Although the government provided arrears on basic pay while hiking the salaries on July 1, indications have been made that no arrears would be released on allowances. NJCA has confirmed that the employee unions would launch protest across the nation if the allowances are hiked, without the arrears. “Arrears are unlikely, but protests would be launched if they fail to release (the arrears),” Mishra said.

The date of allowances hike is reported to be April 1. NJCA claims, through its sources, that the government would be implementing the allowance hike from April 1. “It is most likely that the government announces the hike by April 1,” Mishra confirmed.

Click here for the full report

Media Report : Allowance committee may suggest betterment of HRA

The committee formed to examine allowances for central Govt. employees may submit it's report to Finance Ministry on Monday, the 20th February 2017.
Also Read 

Report on allowances likely to be submitted on Monday

According to media report as published in Financial Express,
"A year after implementation of the new pay- and pension-related recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission (CPC), the government is likely to approve the revised allowances proposed by it for central government staff after the ongoing state elections are over, by March 15. The reworked allowances are likely to be effective from April 1 and at least in the case of the employees in metro cities, the house rent allowances (HRA) could be a little more generous than the CPC’s award, sources told FE.

Taking note of employees’ representations, a finance secretary-led panel is looking at HRA of 30% of basic pay for those in cities with a population of over 5 million, against 24% recommended by CPC, the sources said. In the Sixth CPC award period (2006-2015), HRA was 30% for these cities. A draft Cabinet note for implementation of the revised allowances would be circulated soon, the sources said. HRA accounts for about 60% of the total allowances bill."

Click here to read the full report published in Financial Express

Report on allowances likely to be submitted on Monday

It is reported that Lavasa committee, which is currently examining allowances recommended by 7yh Pay Commission for Central Govt. employees, to submit it's report to Finance Ministry on Monday, 20th February.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley formed ‘Committee on Allowances’ for examination of the recommendations of 7th Pay Commission on allowances other than dearness allowance as the pay commission had recommended abolition of 51 allowances and subsuming 37 others out of 196 allowances.
The committee had an original time frame of four months but latter Govt. extended it's tenure upto 22nd February by it's own, possible to buy more time.
Possibility of arrears from August 2016 ?
“The government plans to pay pay higher allowance, under 7th Pay Commission recommendations, with retrospective effect from August 2016, central government employees unions demanded for implementation of the allowances with retrospective effect from January 2016,” - according to sources (as published by a popular website).

Clarification on LTC Claim by Central Govt. Employees

Department of Personnel and Training issued a clarification regarding procedural aspects of Leave Travel Concession available for Central Govt. employees. 
It is basically a clarification related to those journeys partially performed by employees by pvt. vehicles or own arrangement.
Salient features are :
(a)In all such cases the Government servant may be required to submit a declaration that he and the members of the family in respect of whom the claim is submitted have indeed travelled upto the declared place of visit. 
(b) If a public transport is available in a particular area, the Government servant will be reimbursed the fare admissible for journey by otherwise entitled mode of public transport from the nearest airport/railway station/bus terminal to the declared place of visit by shortest direct route. 
(c) In case, there is no public transport available in a particular stretch of journey, the Government servant may be reimbursed as per his entitlement for journey on transfer for a maximum limit of 100 Kms covered by the private/personal transport based on a self-certification from the Government servant. Beyond this, the expenditure shall be borne by the Government servant.  
Click here for the full O.M. dated 09.02.17

Higher Allowances for central staff likely from 1st April

7th Pay Commission: Govt not to hike minimum pay, higher allowances to be paid from April 1

No Arrears likely.

 In a setback to central government employees, Centre has decided not to hike minimum pay under the 7th Pay Commission recommendations. Higher allowances and minimum pay under the 7th Pay Commission have been the major bone of contention among majority of the central government employees. The government seems in no mood to increase minimum pay of Rs 18,000 under the 7th Pay Commission. Though the government is expected to announce higher allowances in March, it had no plan to give allowances in arrears from August.

All-India CPI-IW for December, 2016 : View likely Central and Bank D.A.

Update : IBA issued D.A /D.R circular
(see the circular links in the bottom)
The All-India CPI-IW for December, 2016 decreased by 2 points and stood 275 (two hundred and seventy five).

2% more D.A. for central employees w.e.f. January 2017
Consequent on decrease of 2 point decrease in AICPI (IW) in December 2016, Increase in Dearness Allowance for Central Government Emplyees and Pensioners with effect from January 2017 estimated to be 2%.

D.A. for Bank employees to reduce by 9 slabs
DA payable to employees for the Quarter Feb. to April 2017 shall be 469 slabs i.e. a decrease of 9 slabs from the current level . (Source : Mr Debashis Das)
Click here for IBA Circular for D.A. from Feb'17
Click here for Dearness Relief circular for Pensioners

FM disappoints, only marginal relief for salaried taxpayers

Personal income tax for people with income in the slab of 2.5 lakh to 5 lakh to be reduced to 5% instead of 10%. This will reduce their tax liability to half while all other tax payers above this slab will also be benefited in terms of lesser tax of Rs.12,500 per individual.

New Tax Rate for F.Y. 2017-18

Income                                              Tax
Upto 2.5 Lakh                                     NIL
2.5 to 5 Lakh                                       5%

5 to 10 Lakh           :      12,500 + 20% of amount exceeding 5 Lakh
10 Lakh and above : 1,12,500 + 30% of amount exceeding 10 Lakh