COURTESY HT DEC 31
Punjab to start filling 50,000 govt posts, restructure 10 depts
Cabinet also approves amendments to Punjab Civil Services Rules for granting a new pay scale
HT Correspondent
letterschd@hindustantimes.com
Chandigarh : The Punjab cabinet has announced that recruitment to 50,000 government posts will be started soon, and has also approved the restructuring of ten departments. Chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday chaired the meeting held through video conferencing, where the cabinet authorised the CM to amend rules to carry out the proposed recruitment after the restructuring.
The 10 departments to be restructured are labour; technical education and industrial training; public works department (bridges and roads); animal husbandry; fisheries and dairy development; tourism and cultural affairs; local government; printing and stationery; sports and youth service welfare; defence services welfare and the cooperation department. These departments will see abolition of 2,375 posts, with 785 posts to be created in the first go.
The cabinet also approved amendments to the Punjab Civil Services Rules for granting a new pay scale on the pattern of the 7th Central Pay Commission for all fresh recruitment to the state government and its entities.
A spokesperson of the chief minister’s office, however, said the amendment approved by the cabinet stipulates that the expression “fixed monthly emoluments” for employees, appointed to the service before the July 17, 2020, means the amount drawn monthly, equal to the minimum of the pay band, of the post in question.
PLAN TO EMPOWER WOMEN-HEADED HOUSEHOLDS; DATA POLICY APPROVED
To empower women-headed households in the state, the cabinet gave its nod to implement Mata Tripta Mahila Yojana. Punjab has around 55 lakh households (as per 2011 Census), of which around 8 lakh are headed by women. The objective of this new policy is to empower Women-Headed Households (WHH) in Punjab.
Punjab State Data Policy (PSDP) has also got cabinet approval to track progress and to provide efficient access to services. It was decided to regulate private security agencies engaged in activities related to the transportation of cash under the umbrella of the Private Security Agencies (Regulation) Act, (PSARA) 2005, which has also been approved. Such cash transportation agencies would now be required to obtain a licence. To enhance efficiency of the Directorate of State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) and District Institutes of Education Training (DIETs), the cabinet gave its nod to create a separate cadre of personnel