Bengaluru, 16 July

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar tabled 33 projects totalling a budget outlay of Rs 1,790 crore for the Brand Bengaluru initiative in State Assembly on Tuesday. Of the 33 projects planned for infrastructure development, six are new proposals.

The first of the six new projects comes under Suguma Sanchar (Free Movement) Bengaluru. In this, Rs 200 crore has been budgeted for Urban Tunnel projects to alleviate traffic congestion in the City. Under Education Bengaluru, Rs 50 crore was announced for enhancing facilities in government schools. A total of 120 crore was allotted for Green Bengaluru and it will be used for installing percolation tanks to address water scarcity and other environmental initiatives. Under Healthy Bengaluru initiative, Rs 275 crore was allotted for high-tech maternity homes, emergency health care centres and war rooms. Two new projects were introduced under Clean Bengaluru: Rs 100 crore for acquiring landfill sites and solid waste management equipment.

Salary, pension of govt workers to go up by 58%

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the salary and pension of the State government employees will increase by 58.5 per cent to the basic pay as of 1 July, 2024 as recommended by the Seventh Pay Commission.

The revision of salary and pension will come into effect from 1 August this year and will see a 32 per cent increase in the house rent allowance.

The Seventh Pay Commission, headed by former chief secretary K Sudhakar Rao, on Monday recommended a 27.5 percent hike on basic salary of government employees.

This salary revision will incur an additional expenditure of Rs 20,208 crore per annum and necessary budgetary provisions have been made in the budget of 2024-25, he said.  —Salar News