Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said that instead of suspending bullet train project and Central Vista project, the government is "cutting" of government employees who are serving the people in the time of coronavirus crisis.
The Congress on Friday attacked the Centre over the issue of freeze in hike of dearness allowance (DA) for central government employees in the wake of the financial stress due to the coronavirus crisis.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said that instead of suspending bullet train project and Central Vista project, the government is "cutting" of government employees who are serving the people in the time of crisis.
"Instead of suspending the multi-million crore bullet train project and the Central Vista beautification project, it is an insensitive and inhumane decision of the government to cut the DA central employees, pensioners and jawans who are serving the public in the time of coronavirus crisis," Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet.
The central government on Thursday announced that it has suspended the increment in dearness allowance (DA) for its employees till July 2021.
The move will affect around 50 lakh central government employees and 61 lakh pensioners.
"In view of the crisis arising out of COVID-19, it has been decided that additional instalment of dearness allowance payable to central government employees and dearness relief (DR) to central government pensioners due from January 1, 2020, shall not be paid,'' the Finance Ministry said in its order.
"The additional instalment of DA and DR due from July 1, 2020, and January 1, 2021, shall also not be paid," the Department of Expenditure said in an office memorandum.
The DA and DR at current rates will, however, continue to be paid, it added.
It was only in March that the Union Cabinet had approved an increase of 4% to DA in March. Notably, the government revises the DA twice a year to compensate for the rise in prices.
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