Kerala Assembly unanimously passes bill to hike salaries of ministers and MLAs

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala Assembly has unanimously passed a bill to increase the salaries and allowances of ministers and MLAs. The pension of former MLAs has also been increased. The Governor's prior approval was obtained to introduce the bill, as it involves additional financial expenditure. As per the provisions of the bill, the monthly salary and allowances of MLAs will increase from Rs 69,000 to Rs 98,000.

The salary component is relatively small, with most of the amount paid as various allowances, including travel allowance. The monthly pay of ministers will go up from Rs 99,000 to Rs 1.33 lakh, marking an increase of nearly one-third. The previous revision of salaries and allowances was made in 2018. At present, private secretaries and additional private secretaries to ministers receive a salary of Rs 1.40 lakh, while ministers themselves receive only around Rs 1 lakh.

A commission headed by Justice C.N. Ramachandran Nair had recommended that the government increase the salaries and allowances of ministers and MLAs by 30 to 35 percent. Any revision of these payments requires amendments to the Salaries and Allowances Act.

Salary hike for MLA staff too

The salaries of staff appointed by MLAs will also be increased. Their monthly salary will go up from Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000. The fuel allowance for MLAs will also be increased, taking into account the rise in fuel prices. The salary structure of ministers will see revisions in basic pay and dearness allowance (DA) as well.