After 16 years, Delhi government approves pay hike for Disaster Management officials (File photo)The Delhi government has approved a remuneration hike of up to 100 per cent for 32 employees of the Delhi State Disaster Management Authority (DSDMA), marking the first revision in their pay since these posts were created in 2009.“We have delivered justice to disaster management personnel by revising remuneration that remained unchanged for 16 years,” Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said. She added that the decision was “a long-overdue measure to deliver justice to officials who have served as the backbone of Delhi’s disaster management system since 2009”.According to the Chief Minister’s Office, the posts of project officers, district project officers and project coordinators were created with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). However, these posts were never linked to any regular government pay structure or equivalent pay category, and thus the monthly remuneration stayed fixed at Rs 25,000 for project officers and district project officers, and at Rs 20,000 for project coordinators. These officials neither benefited from periodic pay revisions nor received any Dearness Allowance.The staff discharge statutory functions under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and their responsibilities include preparing district-level disaster plans, conducting risk assessments, and coordinating with the National Disaster Response Force, the State Disaster Response Force, Delhi Fire Services, Police and Health departments during emergencies, besides running training programmes and mock drills.Gupta noted that people holding such post in states like Karnataka, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh draw remuneration of around Rs 45,000 to Rs 50,000, calling the disparity inappropriate for “a high-risk metropolitan city like the national capital”.The government said it would also consider future welfare measures, including performance-based annual increments and medical coverage for these officials and their families.