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SFI seeks donation for ‘68 poor MLAs’; raises HPU budget cut

During the Budget Session of Assembly, the Himachal Pradesh government had passed three amended Bills hiking the salaries and allowances of the chief minister, other ministers, MLAs, Speaker and Deputy Speaker by almost 24 per cent.

SFI activists during the protest at HPU campus, Tuesday. (Express photo)

Student’s Federation of India (SFI) on Tuesday slammed the Himachal Pradesh government for its decision to enhance salaries and allowances of the chief minister and MLAs. They said that at a time when the state is struggling with financial crunch, the ministers are focusing on increasing their salaries and allowances in the assembly. As a mark of protest, SFI activists held placards with ‘donation campaign for the 68 poor MLAs’ written and stood at the campus demanding charity for the “poor legislators.”

SFI campus president Ankush Rana said, “Our MLAs are poor and helpless, struggling in their daily lives, and thus need financial assistance from the public. The government should focus on framing policies that benefit the public. There is a need to increase the budget for education and healthcare and to provide more facilities to the people rather than increasing their own salaries. On the first day of protest, we collected Rs 70 for the MLAs. We will hold more symbolic protests in the coming days and will pass all collected charities to the MLAs.”

He added that HPU sought a budget of around Rs 250 crore but the government allotted around Rs 151 crore. “Funding for education and healthcare is being reduced continuously and the government has been citing economic crisis as reason. But MLAs increased their own salaries and allowances, which will cause an additional burden of Rs 24 crore annually to the state exchequer,” he said.

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During the Budget Session of Assembly, the Himachal Pradesh government had passed three amended Bills hiking the salaries and allowances of the chief minister, other ministers, MLAs, Speaker and Deputy Speaker by almost 24 per cent. The CM, who receives a salary of Rs 95,000 per month, is now proposed to get Rs 1.15lakh. A cabinet minister, who is entitled to draw a salary of Rs 80,000, is proposed to receive Rs 95,000 per month. Similarly, a minister of state and deputy minister, who get monthly salaries of Rs 78,000 and Rs 75,000, respectively, will now get Rs 93,000 and Rs 80,000, respectively.

The salary of an elected MLA is proposed to increase from Rs 50,000 to Rs 70,000.

SFI cubmits memorandum to director of higher education

The SFI state committee on Tuesdy submitted a memorandum to the Director of Higher Education, highlighting concerns over the alleged exploitation of students under the guise of the PTA fund in various colleges across Himachal Pradesh. SFI accused college administrations of misusing these funds and urged the director to take action. They said that the fund was introduced under PTA Rule 2006 for the welfare of students. However, students are being charged anything between Rs 600 and Rs 1000 under the fund, leading to the accumulation of lakhs by college administrations. The Government Excellence College, Sanjauli, was mentioned as an example of this malpractice, they said.

Saurabh Parashar

Saurabh Parashar is a journalist with The Indian Express, where he primarily covers developments in Himachal Pradesh. He has been associated with The Indian Express since 2017 and has earlier worked with The Times of India. He has 17 year + experience in the field of print journalism. An alumnus of Government College for Men, Sector 11, (Panjab University), Chandigarh, Saurabh holds a Diploma in Journalism from Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, Chandigarh. He pursued his Master’s in Mass Communication from Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology, Hisar. In addition, he completed his law degree from Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), Shimla. ... Read More

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