Orissa High Court directs increase in home guards pay

The Orissa High Court Friday directed the state government to pay home guards remuneration equal to that of the lower rank salary of regular police personnel (constable). Justice Biswanath Rath directed the Odisha government to implement the Supreme Court ruling in this connection and asked it to fix the remuneration of the home guards within three months. As an interim measure the home guards will now get a daily remuneration of Rs 500 from January 1, 2020, said advocate Nira Sundar Panda, who argued the case for the home guards.

There are about 18,000 home guards in the state. They are currently paid Rs 300 per day by the state government. Guided by the principle of equal pay for equal work, the Supreme Court had in 2015 directed the state governments that home guards be given duty allowance at rates equal to the minimum pay that a regular police personnel of the state is entitled to for 30 days (a month). While many states had implemented it, Odisha government had not, Panda said.

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