Officers in federal secretariat, ICT get 150pc executive allowance

ISLAMABAD: After creating certain exclusions, the government has granted 150 percent Executive Allowance to BS-17-BS-22 officers working in the Federal Secretariat and Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Field Administration with effect from July 1, 2022.

The notification issued by the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday, however, caused hue and cry among those bureaucrats who have been excluded from the officers drawing benefit from it.

The staff working below Grade 17 also voiced concern against it. “It’s unfair that the government excluded certain number of officers from Executive Allowance,” said one bureaucrat who is working in Islamabad but will not get this lucrative allowance. It might start litigation before the judiciary because there are officers who are not posted by the Establishment Division.

There are 12 cadres of different groups working in the Federal Secretariat, and there are others where their posting is not done by the Establishment Division. They have been excluded from the Executive Allowance.

According to the Office Memorandum (OM) issued by the Ministry of Finance on Tuesday, the federal government granted approval of Executive Allowance in line with the allowance granted by the provincial governments with effect from July 1, 2022 to officers in BPS-17 to 22 at 1.5 times (150 percent) of the running basic pay as on June 30, 2022 and it shall remain frozen at the same level till further orders.

This allowance shall be granted subject to following conditions:

(i) This allowance will be admissible to all officers posted by the Establishment Division against sanctioned posts of Section Officers, Deputy Secretaries, Joint Secretaries, Senior Joint Secretaries, Additional Secretaries, Additional Secretaries (In-Charge), Special Secretaries and Secretaries in the Federal Secretariat (ministries/divisions), Prime Minister Secretariat and President Secretariat.

(ii) This allowance will be admissible to officers posted as Assistant Commissioners, Additional Deputy Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners & Chief Commissioners in Islamabad Capital Territory Field Administration.

(iii) Those officers posted on deputation against posts identified in (i) and (ii) above will not be entitled to draw deputation allowance as well as any other allowance or emoluments by whatever name called specific to their cadre or organisation.

(iv) Those drawing Executive Allowance shall not be entitled to draw any of the existing Disparity Reduction Allowance.

(v) This allowance will be discontinued upon officer transfer/posting outside the posts identified (i) and (ii) above.

(vi) This allowance will be admissible at 50 percent of the specified rate during mandatory trainings.

(vii) This allowance will be admissible only for the first thirty days of sanctioned leave of any kind excluding EOL once in a financial year.

(viii) This allowance will not be admissible during suspension period, appointment as OSD (excluding period under mandatory training) and during joining time.

(ix) This allowance will be subject to Income Tax

(x) This allowance shall not be treated as part of emolument for the purpose of calculation of pension/gratuity.

(xi) This allowance shall not be admissible to the officers during the tenure of their posting/deputation outside Pakistan.

(xii) This allowance will be admissible to officers on their repatriation from posting/deputation from outside Pakistan at the rate and amount which would have been admissible to them had they not been posted abroad.