Transport package for BPS-20 from July 1

Federal government officials in grade 20 and above would be offered transport monetisation packages for giving up their chauffeur driven cars in the range of Rs 40,000 to Rs 70,000 per month from July 1, 2011. A senior official of the Ministry of Finance said the monetisation package would be offered to 1,391 senior officers in grade 20 and above at the start of the new fiscal year in July. If approved, the officials would be given between Rs 40,000 and Rs 70,000 in addition to their salaries from August. It was expected that a majority of officers would opt for the new facility, the official said. In return, the officials would let go of the official vehicle, driver, maintenance and petrol allowances that would help save over Rs 100 million per annum.
The government would also be saving Rs 1.6 billion earmarked for purchasing new vehicles during the next fiscal year, he added. The Finance Ministry would also be recommending to the Cabinet Division that the officers opting for the monetisation package not be entitled to use any project vehicles, he added. At present, other than their official vehicle, senior officers illegally use large number of their department’s vehicles and in some case, start using project cars just to get various allowances. He said the Finance Ministry could only recommend, but the Cabinet Division was actually responsible for controlling the misuse of vehicles. However, he said the auditor general would be requested to conduct a special audit in the next fiscal year to ascertain the abuse of the facility. “The package will be offered by the federal government and there is no binding on the provincial governments to follow suit,” the official said.
About the monetisation package for houses, he said more time was needing to chalk out a monetisation package for housing facilities. The perks of officers in grade 20 and above cost the government Rs 4.7 billion annually and if administrative expenses are included, the amount soars to Rs 6 billion. The monetisation would reduce the expense to Rs 3 billion.