New Delhi: Railway employees will be given 78-day wages as Diwali bonus, the same as in the last two years for the fiscal 2013-14 despite the financial crunch.
It has been decided to give 78-day wages as productivity-linked bonus (PLB) to Railways staff for the year 2013-14 and accordingly the order has been issued, said a senior Railway Ministry official.
In 2011-12 and 2012-13 also, 78-day wages were given as PLB to railway employees.
Productivity-linked bonus is paid to railway employees each year before the Dussehra festival and over 11 lakh non-gazetted railway employees will benefit from the decision.
The PLB will cost about Rs 800 crore to the national transporter.
Though the Railways have issued the PLB ordrer, it is yet to be approved by the Cabinet.
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a trip to the US and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is in hospital, Railway Minister Sadananda Gowda could not obtain the cabinet clearance for the PLB proposal, the officials said.
“The decision will be taken to the cabinet for post-facto approval,” the official said, adding, “the order was issued earlier because of the paucity of time.”
However, All-India Railwaymen Federation General Secretary Shivgopal Mishra said “the railwaymen should have got more bonus as the production has increased this year from the last year. Railway Ministry is stuck with 78-day wages for the three years in a row.”
He said each eligible employee will get about Rs 8,975 as bonus and about 11.5 lakh employees will be getting it this year.