Government employees may get additional 7% DA soon

Government employees may get an additional seven per cent dearness allowance with effect from January 1, 2012. The Cabinet is expected to take a call on this proposal on Friday. The dearness allowance (DA) is revised twice every year on the basis of change in the consumer price index (CPI). The CPI inflation stood at 8.83 per cent (combined) for the month of February, higher than the 7.7 per cent in January. The Reserve Bank of India in its review of monetary policy on March 15 said “price pressures persist at the retail level”.

Special Undertaking of Unit Trust of India

The Cabinet is also expected to take a call on creation of a holding company to transfer underlying assets of the Special Undertaking of Unit Trust of India (SUUTI). This proposal has drawn a lot of opposition from public sector banks. The proposed company is likely to discharge claim and liabilities arising out of or relating to the scheme referred to in UTI Repeal Act 2002 and relatable to SUUTI, the source added. SUUTI was formed by the restructuring of the erstwhile Unit Trust of India (UTI) into UTI Trustee Company Private Ltd and the SUUTI. It came into effect from February 1, 2003. This has been entrusted with the responsibility of managing various schemes managed by erstwhile UTI. The proposed company may be in the form of a special purpose vehicle to be funded by banks. It could be asked to buy Government's stake in Axis Bank, L&T and ITC which is being held through SUUTI. However, the holding company will not be allowed to pledge these shares but can borrow funds on the basis of these shares. These shares cannot be sold without the permission of the lenders and the Government.