State Minister for Finance Asim Dasgupta said on Wednesday: “We are aiming at a 10 per cent deduction in our non-plan expenditure, which will save Rs 500 crore annually.”
The measures include restriction on foreign trips by ministers and bureaucrats, restriction on air and railway travel, ban on holding conferences and seminars at hotels and private premises, ban on purchase of new equipment unless absolutely necessary, ban on purchase of new cars and furnishing offices, restriction on deployment of home guards at the houses of government officers.
“We are asking all the government employees to enforce these guidelines strictly,” the minister said.
He said that he would chair a meeting of the empowered committee of finance ministers of various states to discuss the reduction of sales tax on aviation fuel.
The state government has also announced an increment in Dearness Allowance amounting to 6 per cent of basic salary for its 10 lakh government employees, with a corresponding increase in dearness relief to 4.3 lakh retired government employees, to be effective from June 1.
“The increase in DA will cost the state exchequer nearly Rs 630 crore,” added Dasgupta.