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Reconsider termination of 25,000 home guards, police department urged
A day after the UP police terminated the service of 25,000 home guards, the state home guard department has urged the police to reconsider its decision.
A day after the UP police terminated the service of 25,000 home guards, the state home guard department has urged the police to reconsider its decision.
Home guards and civil security minister Chetan Chauhan said the state police had not sacked the home guards but removed them from duty. “The home guard department sends jawans on deputation to various government departments. The home guards do not have any fixed monthly salary but are paid on the basis of the number of days of duty,” he said.
“A large number of jawans are serving with the the state police, managing traffic and doing other jobs entrusted to them. They are given daily allowances by the department. The problem arose after the Supreme Court directed the state government to give daily allowance to home guards at par with the state police,” he said.
The home guards were paid Rs 500 daily stipend but after the apex court order, it increased to Rs 672 per day. The order had added to the state police’s budgetary constraints. Since the allowance was revised in the middle of the financial year, the police department expressed its inability to pay the home guards according to the court order. Thus, the police removed 25,000 home guards from duty.
“I told the director general of police (DGP) not to remove all the home guards from duty but to curtail their strength, according to the budget available with the police department. The DGP assured me that he will consider the proposal. The state government is committed to giving daily allowance to the home guards according to the apex court order. In the financial year 2020-21, budgetary allocation will be made for the payment of the revised stipend to the jawans,” Chauhan said.
He added: “I have urged the departments to curtail the service days of home guards from 30 to 22. In this way, the government departments, including police, will be able to pay the revised allowance to the jawans. After the budget is passed in March, next year, the jawans will get 30 days employment.”
In an order on Monday, additional director general (ADG), police headquarters, Prayagraj, BP Jogdand said, “The posting of 25,000 home guards in the state police has been terminated with immediate effect.”
Jogdand told the superintendents of police of all the districts, DIG range and IGP zones to send details of the services provided by the home gaurds in their respective districts, ranges and zones within a week, for payment of allowances.
