Others too want it

The government upgraded the posts of inspectors and sub-inspectors of police and now other employees of the civil service want similar upgrades, which could cost the government a fortune over the next nine years.
If the demands of all the civil service employees were to be met, the state would have to spend by 2020 an estimated Tk 1.23 lakh crore extra on salary payments and benefits.
To keep the police happy, the government in August through a circular upgraded 17,000 posts of police inspector and sub-inspector. The post of inspector was elevated to class-I non-cadre post from class-II and the post of sub-inspector to class-II from class-III.
At least Tk 855 crore would be required in nine years to pay for the increases in salary and benefits and in the first year additional Tk 13.10 crore would be needed.
As soon as the decision was implemented, all administrative employees at Bangladesh Secretariat, assistant settlement officers and additional land acquisition officers have sent proposals seeking upgrade of their positions to class-I from class-II.
All class-III employees at the secretariat, surveyors in the ministry of land, sanitary inspectors in the health ministry, warehouse inspectors, station officers, staff officers, junior inspectors and mobilising officers, have also sent similar proposals to get upgraded to class-II.
Around 12.20 lakh civil servants want upgrades of their posts.
A finance ministry high official msaid if all proposals were entertained, it would destabilise the government expenditure management.
Sources said before the two posts of police were upgraded, the finance division, with directives from the finance minister, analysed the financial impact the upgrades could have.
The finance division also estimated how much additional money would be required to meet the demands of same level officers of other government wings.
Officials said the finance division assumed that the beneficiaries of the upgrade would be in service until 2020. By that time, two more national pay commission awards would probably be announced where on an average 60 percent pay hike was expected.
As per the finance division analysis, an additional Tk 56,445 crore would be needed in nine years to pay the wages and allowances of all civil servants asking for the upgrades.
The government would need Tk 65,647 crore for their pensions too.
Former finance adviser to a caretaker government Akbar Ali Khan told The Daily Star with two posts of police upgraded, it was expected that same level officers of other services would want the same privileges.
He said this was bowing down to pressure. Upgrades should be thought of within an administrative reform structure, he said.
“If the post of anybody is upgraded or salary increased, without any specific aim of reform, some in the service will be happy while some others will become unhappy. But it will not bring any benefit to the administration. People will not get any better service, either. Maybe some individuals will be benefited,” Akbar Ali Khan said.
He said the demand of police personnel to raise their salary is logical but the government would have to decide how the pay would be hiked.
The police have been demanding this upgrade for a long time. Meeting this demand has nothing to do with improvement of the quality of their service, finance ministry sources said.