DHAKA, May 16: The government of Bangladesh has announced a new pay scale, raising salaries by 53 per cent on an average, for all public servants under Grade 20. The new scale will be implemented in three phases with retrospective effect from Jan 1, 2005.

The cabinet, at a meeting on Monday, with Prime Minister Khaleda Zia in the chair, approved the sixth pay scale. The secretarial committee proposed the based on the Pay Commission’s recommendations. The highest gross salary of a public servant stands at Tk23,000 and the lowest at Tk2,400 (basic).

The highest gross salary was Tk15,000 and the lowest basic salary was Tk1,500 under the last (5th) pay scale. The monthly basic salary of a class-I officer at entry-level, which was Tk4,300 in the previous pay scale and Tk2,850 in the 4th one, has been fixed at Tk6,800.

The new pay scale will directly benefit some 828,000 public servants, including police, and 140,000 military personnel. In addition, 560,000 teachers of non-government schools, colleges and madressahs, under the monthly pay order system, will be entitled to enhanced pay.