BHOPAL: Discontentment among 23,000 panchayat secretaries of Madhya Pradesh is brewing up as their salaries remain unpaid for past five months.
“While other government employees get their salaries from global account it is only poor panchayat secretaries whose salary is drawn from other heads like 2853 and 6299 which often falls short of funds,” said president of Panchayat Sachiv Sanghathan, Dinesh Sharma.
Government sources confirmed that anomaly in salary system has led to this situation. The heads through which salary of panchayat secretaries is given fluctuates and the amount falls short therefore their salary budget is released on quarterly basis.
Salaries of the panchayat secretaries are not being paid for past three to five months. Government has recently released some funds for some districts but that too fell short. In some places salary of one month or even less was paid.
Failure in providing salaries for months has now started reflecting on lives of thousands of panchayat secretaries. Several have faulted on paying monthly installment of their bikes, home loans. ‘About a dozen secretaries have complained that bank authorities have given them final warning for confiscation of their bikes,’ said Sharma.
The Sanghathan has written letter to the Panchayat and Rural Development minister Kamleshwar Patel and ACS Manoj Shrivastava demanding salaries and to make provision that they get salary on 1st of every month like other government employees. Their meeting with the officials till date yielded no results.
“We have asked the minister and senior officials of the department to resolve the issue by end of this month else sachiv sanghathan would have to adopt means of protest. We will sit on dharna in front of mantralaya,” said president of sanghathan, Sharma.
