Chandigarh, October 29
Punjab BJP President Kewal Singh Dhillon on Thursday welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to increase Dearness Allowance (DA) for central government employees by 3%. He said that if the BJP comes to power in Punjab, state government employees would also receive DA at the rate of 63%, in line with the Centre. He accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government of denying state employees their rightful dues.
Dhillon said Punjab’s DA rate had yet to reach 60%. He pointed out that the Punjab and Haryana High Court had directed the state government to grant DA to its employees on a par with central government employees, but the order had not been complied with. On October 27, the High Court imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh on the AAP government, which also had to tender an apology before the court.
Dhillon further stated that the state government had filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) before the Supreme Court, but it remained on the defect list and had not yet been taken up for hearing. Claiming that nearly eight lakh state employees were protesting to demand their dues, Dhillon accused the government of remaining adamant despite their concerns. He said a BJP government would ensure that pending DA arrears were also paid to state employees.
Dhillon said Punjab stood to benefit significantly from the Centre’s Sports Goods Manufacturing Scheme, which, he said, could help revive Jalandhar’s struggling sports goods industry. He noted that Jalandhar is one of India’s leading sports goods manufacturing hubs, accounting for approximately 60% of the country’s sports goods production. However, he alleged that 40% of the industry’s units had shut down due to the AAP government’s neglect. He said the central scheme could help revitalise the industry, restore Jalandhar’s standing as a global sports goods manufacturing hub and create employment opportunities for thousands of young people.
Speaking about the Container Manufacturing Promotion Scheme, Dhillon said it would directly benefit exporters in Punjab. He explained that hosiery and bicycles manufactured in Ludhiana, along with sports goods produced in Jalandhar, could be exported in cost-effective, domestically manufactured containers, helping reduce logistics costs and improve the competitiveness of Punjab’s exporters.
Commenting on the Prime Minister’s Viksit Gram Swaraj Yojana, Dhillon said the initiative would strengthen more than 13,000 panchayats across Punjab. He added that training and greater authority for sarpanches and panches would help accelerate development and improve governance in villages across the state.