The Federal Finance Ministry has proposed a special allowance of 15 percent of the basic salaries of officers and soldiers of the armed forces and sent a summary in this regard to the Federal Cabinet.
Earlier, the ministry had sought the approval of Prime Minister Imran Khan for the special allowance but the premier directed it to take up the matter with the federal cabinet.
According to sources in the Finance Ministry, due to a delay in preparation of an interim report by the Pay and Pension Commission on the increase in salaries of federal employees, civil servants were given a 10 percent increment in basic pay in addition to a 25 percent increase in special allowance, amounting to a 35 percent increase overall.
Now, on the recommendation of the Pay and Pension Commission, a summary has been sent to the cabinet proposing a 10 percent increase in pay as announced in the budget for 2021-22, as well as a 15 percent special allowance.
The total salary increase for armed forces personnel will be 25 percent if the cabinet approves the proposal.
According to sources in the Ministry of Finance, a 15 percent special allowance was recommended to bridge the gap in the salary structure due to no an increase in the salaries of armed forces employees for the last two years.
If the cabinet approves the 15 percent increase, an additional Rs38 billion will be required.
With Minister for Finance Shaukat Tarin on leave, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr Waqar Masood was contacted but he did not respond.
The federal government has already announced a 25 percent special allowance for civil servants.
However, the leading opposition party Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) does not see happy with this proposal.
PML-N General Secretary Ahsan Iqbal said that such “biased decisions contribute to the deepening of the civil-military divide”.
“Inflation is the same for all employees. A 15 percent special pay allowance must be given across the board, to all civil and military employees.”
ایسے امتیازی فیصلے ملک میں سول ملٹری تقسیم گہری کرنے کا باعث بنتے ہیں- مہنگائی سب ملازمین کے لئے ایک جیسی ہے- 15% سپیشل پے الاؤنس یکساں طور پہ تمام سول و ملٹری ملازمین کو دیا جائے- pic.twitter.com/YrIqBjXbWa
— Ahsan Iqbal (@betterpakistan) July 10, 2021
