Kolkata, 05 August (H.S.) : The West Bengal Finance Department has accelerated preparations for the payment of pending dearness allowance (DA) arrears to employees of government grant-in-aid institutions, initiating administrative measures to implement the process in line with Supreme Court directions.

According to Finance Department sources, IT personnel responsible for uploading salary and financial bills on government portals have been instructed not to process any other arrear-related bills for the time being. Priority has been given exclusively to bills relating to DA arrears.

The exercise covers employees whose salaries are not paid directly from the state treasury but who work in government grant-in-aid institutions. Beneficiaries include teachers and non-teaching staff of government-aided and recognised schools, as well as employees of panchayats, urban local bodies, statutory boards, corporations and other grant-in-aid organisations. The arrears are to be released under the ROPA 2009 pay structure.

A virtual meeting was recently held between officials of the Finance Department and various government departments, during which departments were directed to create dedicated modules or options on their respective salary portals within 15 days for uploading DA arrear bills. Once the technical preparations are completed, the Finance Department will begin accepting the arrear claims.

The move follows the conclusion of nearly a decade of legal proceedings in the Supreme Court regarding the payment of pending DA arrears. Officials clarified that the arrear payment under ROPA 2009 is separate from the 20 per cent DA announced under ROPA 2019.

The Finance Department has instructed nodal officers and IT personnel across departments to complete the necessary preparations at the earliest in accordance with the prescribed guidelines.

Swapan Mondal, a leader of the Bangiya Shikshak O Shikshakarmi Samiti, said the organisation had long been demanding implementation of the Supreme Court's directions on pending DA payments. He expressed hope that the first instalment of the arrears would be released before the Durga Puja festival.

The state government has already announced that full-time government employees and pensioners will receive dearness allowance at 38 per cent of revised basic pay with effect from October 1, 2026. Although the enhanced DA was originally scheduled to be paid from November, the government has decided to release it before Durga Puja. The process for clearing pending DA arrears of grant-in-aid employees is now also being expedited.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh