Bengal govt approves 7th Pay Commission; no announcement on pending DAs

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) administration on Monday formally approved the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission. The high-stakes decision was finalized during a crucial cabinet meeting held at Nabanna, presided over by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. Following the high-level cabinet session, which saw the participation of five key state ministers, Municipal Affairs and Urban Development Minister Agnimitra Paul briefed members of the media regarding the administrative breakthrough.

Minister Paul announced that the state cabinet has formally granted its executive approval to constitute the Seventh Pay Commission. This dedicated panel will be tasked with comprehensively restructuring and upgrading the pay scales for state government staff, members of statutory boards, state corporations, local civic bodies, and all state-aided educational institutions.

However, despite the celebratory atmosphere surrounding the major salary restructuring announcement, the state cabinet did not deliver on all expectations regarding financial employee relief. The ministerial council notably skipped over taking any concrete decision regarding the clearance of massive outstanding Dearness Allowance (DA) dues, an issue that has fueled long-term agitations among state unions.