J&K Waqf Board orders pay revison for employees

SRINAGAR: Syed Darakhshan Andrabi, the Chairperson of Jammu and Kashmir (J-K) Waqf Board, has ordered an increase in the remuneration of employees who have been working temporarily on very meagre remuneration for decades, a release said on Saturday.

As per the release, the employees have been categorised into skilled/semi-skilled/unskilled Categories, and their monthly remuneration has been fixed at Rs 18000, Rs 16000, and Rs 15000, respectively.

The announcement effectively means a 200 percent to 400 percent hike in the salaries of these low-paid employees who have been working for years on remuneration as low as Rs 3000 per month.

The regular employees of the Board, Imaams, Khateebs, Pensioners, and Family Pensioners have also benefited from the announcement, with a 20 per cent hike to their salaries, it said.

The teaching faculty at Waqf Managed Bibi Halima College of Nursing & Medical Technology has benefited from a 15 per cent hike. Special allowances for employees given additional duties have also been announced. A travelling allowance of Rs 3000 per month has been ordered for the Engineering Wing staff as well, it added.

According to Waqf Board sources, the move is the outcome of the tireless efforts of the present Board, which has significantly improved the organisation’s financial position. The release said it is aimed at improving the living conditions of its over a thousand employees working in Kashmir Division on meagre salaries for decades.

The Waqf Board took the decision at a meeting held on Saturday under the chairmanship of Andrabi.

Members of the Board, Ghulam Nabi Haleem & Syed Mohammed Hussain, also participated in the meeting, while the Executive Magistrate of the Board, Ishtiyaq Mohiuddin, also took part.(Agencies)