ISLAMABAD: The federal government constituted the Pay and Pension Commission twice in eight months of its formation in April 2020 to suggest reforms in pay and pension of the federal government employees that it (the government) plans to implement in the budget for the next fiscal year (June 2021).
Three months after the resignation of former head of Pay and Pension Commission, Wajid Rana, former federal secretary in August, the Finance Division has notified reconstitution of 25-member Commission to be headed by Nargis Sethi, a former federal secretary.
A notification issued by the Finance Division said that in compliance with the orders of the Prime Minister’s Office dated 12 November 2020, the revised composition of the pay and pension commission was being notified. An official of the Finance Ministry told a group of mediapersons that the government would have to go for contributory pension system for the fresh recruitment as rising pension liabilities would not allow to offer prevailing facilities to the new hiring. He said that recommendations of the pay and pension would not be applicable on the existing employees of federal and provincial employees.
In April 2020, Pay and Pension Commission was constituted by the federal government to look into the pension and salary structures of employees of both the federal and provincial governments as well as the armed forces, and suggest recommendations as increasing pension liabilities were posing serious challenge to the budget but within four months after its constitution, chairperson of the commission, Wajid Rana decided to resigns.
Nargis Sethi would be the chairperson and Muneer Qureshi, a retired civil servant, Nazrat Bashir, a retired civil servant, Member, Habib UIIah Khan Member, a retired civil servant, Saud Mirza Member, retired civil servant, Dr Masood Akhtar Chaudhry Member retired civil servant, Mehfooz Ali Khan Member retired civil servant, Dr Noor Alam, retired civil servant Member, Vice Admiral Shah Sohail Masood (retired) Member Vice Admiral Pakistan Navy, Managing Director Bahria Foundation , Brig Mohammad Ashraf (retired), Veterans of Pakistan, Nausheen Ahmed, Company Secretary, ICI (Pakistan) Limited Member, and Aquil Raza Khoja from private sector would be member of the commission. Secretary, Finance Division, Government of Pakistan, secretary Establishment Division, secretary defence, secretary Finance Punjab, secretary Finance Sindh, secretary Finance KP, Secretary Finance Balochistan, Secretary Finance AJ&K, secretary Finance G-B, an officer of BS-21 Controller General of Accounts, Director General PP&A, GHQ, Joint Secretary Finance Division have been notified as members ex-officio of the pay and pension commission.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020