Pay and allowances of Home Guards should not be less than minimum wages
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS
RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-879
ANSWERED ON-25.07.2018
Duty allowance of Home Guards
879 . Shri Motilal Vora
(a) whether it is a fact that Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs has shown its displeasure over duty allowances of Home Guards in various States and Union Territories, which is less than minimum wages;
(b) the guidelines of Supreme Court in respect of duty allowances of Home Guards and the reasons for not implementing them in Union Territories till now; and
(c) whether Government would again take up the issue of implementing it in those States where it has not been implemented?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS
(SHRI HANSRAJ GANGARAM AHIR)
(a) to (c): The Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs in its 201st Report has shown its displeasure over the non-implementation of Hon’ble Supreme Court Order regarding payment of duty allowances to the Home Guards by the States.
The Hon’ble Supreme Court in the Civil Appeal No. 2759 of 2015, vide order dated March 11, 2015, directed that the State Government should pay Home Guards at such rates, total of which 30 days ( a month) come to minimum of pay to which the police personnel of States are entitled. It is expected that the State Government shall pass appropriate orders in terms of aforesaid observation on an early date.
Home Guards is a State/UT subject. Pay and allowances of Home Guards are governed by the Home Guards Acts and Rules of the respective States/UTs. Directorate General (Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards), Ministry of Home Affairs vide letters dated 4th June 2015, 16th September 2016, 6th March, 2017, 24th April, 2017 and 11th April, 2018 have requested all the States/UTs to implement the aforementioned decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court. Further, the Ministry of Home Affairs vide letters dated 4th May, 2018 and 18th July, 2018 has also requested the States/UTs to implement the same.
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COMMENTS