Congress govt clears Rs 713 crore pending bills after BRS raises issue in Assembly

The Telangana State government has released Rs 713 crore to clear pending bills for December, following pressure from the BRS in the Legislative Assembly. Former Minister T Harish Rao criticised the Congress government for acting only under pressure, highlighting unpaid allowances and demanding implementation of the Pay Revision Commission and restoration of the Old Pension Scheme.

Hyderabad: The State government on Wednesday released Rs 713 crore towards pending bills payable to government employees for December. The orders were issued after the BRS raised the matter in the State Legislative Assembly, demanding immediate release of pending bills and retirement benefits for government employees.

In a statement, Finance Department officials said the amount covered gratuity, General Provident Fund (GPF), surrender leave encashment and various employee advances. Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka assured that around Rs 700 crore would be released every month for pending bills.

---

Welcoming the orders, former Minister and senior BRS MLA T Harish Rao said the Congress government was acting only when pushed. The release of funds came within 24 hours of his intervention in the Assembly, where he raised the issue of unpaid police surrender leaves, travel and dearness allowances (TA and DA) and station allowances, he said.

“Our fight in the Assembly forced the government to release two of the five pending police surrender leaves. But this is not enough,” Harish Rao said, demanding immediate payment of all dues, including six pending DAs, implementation of the Pay Revision Commission (PRC) and clearance of CPF dues.

He asserted that the BRS would continue to press the issue until justice was delivered to employees and the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) became a reality.