RAWALPINDI: Over 2,500 teachers posted in Murree and Kotli Sattiyan have not been paid a ‘hill area allowance’, promised to them by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif about two years ago.
In an address to a public gathering held there in 2012, the chief minister had announced that all government employees working in Murree and Kotli Sattiyan would get an extra allowance.
During his previous term, the chief minister had also promised that every government employee working in the two tehsils would get a pay raise of Rs1,500. However, so far none of the promises have materialised.
“This is very unfortunate. Despite the CM’s announcement, the authorities concerned have failed to issue the notification,” said Punjab Teachers Union (PTU) Rawalpindi President Shahid Mubarak Raja.
He said most teachers working in these tehsils had to go to school on foot, even during the harsh winter.
A number of teachers posted in Murree and Kotli Sattiyan, requesting not to be named, told Dawn that in Rawalpindi city, teachers receive housing allowance at 45 per cent of their basic salary. However, teachers in Murree and Kotli Sattiyan only received housing allowance amounting to 30 per cent of their basic salary.
PTU General Secretary Azmat Israil demanded that government employees, including teachers, should be given the hill allowance in accordance with the chief minister’s promise.
“We should be given the hill area allowance without any further delay,” said a female teacher, who wished not be named.
She said there were no special incentives offered for government employees working in remote areas. Teachers, she said, instead of focusing on their job, are more preoccupied with lobbying to obtain transfers to Rawalpindi.
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