CRPF seeks Rs 800 crore from government to pay jawans' ration money
New Delhi: A delay in government sanction of additional funds of Rs 800 crore for the CRPF has prompted the paramilitary force to order stopping the ration money allowance (RMA) for its troops this month, a senior official said on Sunday.
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), meanwhile, denied reports that jawans have "run out" of ration money due to this reason and said the allowance for September will be paid shortly.
The allowance is given to jawans and non-gazetted officers of the force for their daily meals and is included in their monthly salaries.
The CRPF said the issue occurred as the RMA for the 3.25 lakh-strong force was revised recently by the government.
"On account of the revision of the ration money allowance made by the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) on July 12, Rs 22,194 per head ration money (in arrears) was paid to around 2 lakh CRPF personnel in July," the force said in a statement.
This amount, it said, is more than six times the monthly ration allowance of jawans and other non-gazetted rank officers.
"Process for payment of ration money (about Rs 3,600) for this month is in progress and it will he paid shortly and hence the contention that jawans have run out of ration money is incorrect, baseless and preposterous and there is no crisis whatsoever," it said.
The CRPF, according to a communication issued to its formations early this month, has sought sanction of 'reserve funds' worth Rs 800 crore from the Union Home Ministry to pay the revised RMA to its troops.
The force has made at least three communications to the ministry in the past. It said the RMA will be provided to troops in receipt of the additional budget from the ministry.
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Bridge portion collapses on Jammu outskirts; 3-4 labourers feared trapped, 1 rescued
Jammu (PTI): A portion of a small bridge collapsed in the Bantalab area on the outskirts of Jammu city on Friday, trapping at least three to four labourers under the debris, while one injured worker was rescued, official sources said.
Authorities have closed the road link following the collapse of the portion of the bridge.
The incident occurred when labourers were carrying out repair work on a retaining wall near the bridge that was damaged in last year's flash floods, the sources said.
According to the sources, a section of the bridge suddenly gave way, burying workers engaged at the site under the rubble.
Police, Army and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams launched rescue operations to extricate those buried under the debris. They pulled out one injured labourer and shifted him to a hospital, the sources said.
Family members of the labourers present at the site said around six workers engaged at the site at the time of the incident came under the debris when the structure collapsed. The family members said while two of the labourers managed to escape, four got trapped.
The sources said those trapped included the husband of a woman labourer, a mason, an unmarried labourer and a relative of the contractor.
There was no official confirmation on the exact number of persons trapped under the debris till the filing of this report.
The rescue operations are ongoing.
