NGOs' Association take up the issue of retention of Special Compensatory Allowance with the Allowance Review Committee

To

The Chief Secretary,

Andaman & Nicobar Administration,

Port Blair.

Sub: Retention of Special Compensatory Allowance – reg.

Sir,

I would like to draw your kind attention to the para 8.10.62 of the report of 7^th Central Pay Commission regarding subsuming various special compensatory allowances under the umbrella of “Tough Location Allowance”. Further, under para 8.10.63, it has been stated that Tough Location Allowance will, however, not be admissible along with Special Duty Allowance, it is, therefore, amply clear that if the recommendations are approved and implemented as proposed by the 7^th Pay Commission, the Govt. Employees of these Islands would be losing the Special Compensatory Allowance which they are getting at present alongwith Island Special Duty Allowance.

As you may be aware, that a committee with Finance Secretary as Chairman has been constituted on 22.07.2016 by Govt. of India, to examine recommendations of 7^th CPC on various allowances other than Dearness Allowance. The Committee is expected to finalize the decision on various allowances in an expeditious manner. 

The legacy of Special Compensatory Allowance starts from British era. In 1945, the then British govt. introduced Andaman Special Pay at the rate of 33 1/3  % of basic pay to all employees of Andaman and Nicobar Administration. This Special Pay was granted for compensating the unhealthiness of this place, under FR 9(25) (C).  This Association notes that although the Ministry of Home Affairs vide their letter No. 4-22/49-AN dated 22.1.1951 discontinued this, subsequently the same was restored, changing the nomenclature as Special Allowance. Though this allowance was given only to the mainland recruit Govt. servants and those posted to the islands from mainland, it was extended to one and all in 1983 following a protracted struggle of this Association. In addition to Special Pay/Allowance, a Compensatory Allowance at the rate of 7½ % was sanctioned in the year 1962 which was subsequently enhanced to 12½ % from October, 1973, as a result of additional high cost of living in these islands.  

But the 4th Central Pay Commission arbitrarily withdrawn these two allowances, in the name of rationalization, and introduced Special Compensatory Allowance (SCA) in its place in slab basis which resulted in huge financial loss to the Govt. employees. Until then employees of A & N Admn. were getting the benefit of  32 ½ % to       42 ½ %  of their basic  pay as Andaman Special Pay and Compensatory  Allowance which were more beneficial compared to the newly introduced slab system of SCA.

Now, the 7^th CPC proposed to introduce Tough Location Allowance subsuming all Special Compensatory Allowances, but Tough Location Allowance will, however, not be admissible along with Special Duty Allowance, to say Island Special Duty Allowance (ISDA) for A & N Islands. There is no justification, whatsoever, to discontinue the Special Compensatory Allowance which is being allowed to the government employees of these islands on genuine reasons which was earned only after protracted struggles.     

Therefore, this Association demands to retain the present Special Compensatory Allowance along with Island Special Duty Allowance OR newly proposed Tough Location Allowance along with ISDA for the employees of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

It is therefore, requested you to kindly take up the matter on priority basis urging upon the Government of India, so as to enable them to bring the issue for consideration by the Allowances Review Committee in its scheduled meeting to be held on 2^nd September, 2016.

Yours faithfully

(T.S.Sreekumar)

General Secretary.

Copy to:

1.      The Secretary (Perl.), A & N Administration for kind information and necessary action.

2.      The Secretary, Staff Side, National Council JCM, Govt. of India for kind information and necessary action.

3.      The Secretary General, Confederation of Central Govt. Employees & Workers, New Delhi for kind information and necessary action.

4.      The Deputy Secretary(Perl.), A & N Administration for kind information and necessary action.

General Secretary.