8th Pay Commission: The National Council of the Joint Consultative Machinery (JCM) was scheduled to meet with the government in the first week of November regarding the formation of the 8th Pay Commission. However, the meeting reportedly did not take place for some reason. It is now expected to occur next month, when some clarity may emerge on the establishment of the 8th Pay Commission, which over 1 crore central government employees and pensioners are eagerly awaiting.
The National Council of the Joint Consultative Machinery, headed by the Union Cabinet Secretary and composed of several bureaucrats and employee union representatives, is the apex body in the JCM scheme that addresses various issues affecting central government employees.
The NC-JCM meeting has been deferred to December, according to an NDTV Profit report, citing employee unions familiar with the development.
Reason for postponement of the meeting
The report attributes the postponement of the meeting to the change in the Secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training.
Vivek Joshi, former Secretary of the DoPT, was repatriated to his home state of Haryana through an order issued on October 26. He assumed charge as the state’s Chief Secretary in the first week of November.
Tuhin Kanta Pandey, the Union Finance Secretary, has taken over as the Secretary of the DoPT. The additional charge was assigned to him through an order issued earlier this month.
Last month, ahead of the November meeting, which was scheduled but later deferred to December, Shiv Gopal Mishra, Secretary (Staff Side) of the NC-JCM, reportedly stated that clarity on the formation of the 8th Pay Commission is expected. “We will definitely raise this matter,” he was quoted as saying in the report.
The National Council of the JCM has already submitted two memorandums, seeking setting up of the pay commission at the earliest.
The first memorandum was presented to Rajiv Gauba, the Union Cabinet Secretary during the Union Budget presentation in July. Mishra noted that the second memorandum was submitted to his successor, T.V. Somanathan, who assumed the role of Cabinet Secretary on August 30.
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Ahead of the Union Budget 2024-25, presented in Parliament on July 23, various media reports speculated that the Centre might announce the formation of the 8th Pay Commission in the budget. However, this did not happen.
Although there were no announcements in the Budget, then Union Finance Secretary T V Somanathan, in a post-Budget interview, indicated that the government might make a decision on the matter in the near future. In an interview with a TV channel, Somanathan said that the next pay commission is due in 2026 and that there is still time, as we are currently in 2024.