Telangana Pensioners and Employees Reject Further PRC Delays

The long-standing standoff between the Telangana state government and its 4.5 lakh employees has reached a critical juncture. 

Following the government’s recent decision to extend the Pay Revision Commission (PRC) tenure by another six months—pushing the deadline to September 30, 2026—employee unions have declared that further delays will “no longer be tolerated.” 

The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of Employees and Pensioners has scheduled a high-stakes meeting today, April 7, 2026, to finalize a roadmap for state-wide protests.

The Six-Month Setback

The Second PRC, headed by retired IAS officer N. Siva Sankar, was originally constituted in October 2023 with a six-month mandate. 

However, repeated extensions have left employees without a new pay scale for over two years. 

Finance Department circulars indicate that the latest extension is intended to finalize “pending pay fixations” from the 2020 scales before implementing new recommendations. 

This bureaucratic bottleneck has dashed hopes for an immediate “fitment” (basic pay hike), which unions are demanding be set at 50%.

Read Also: The 8th Pay Commission Could Triple Your Minimum Basic Pay

Growing Financial Discontent for Telangana Employees and Pensioners

Beyond the stalled PRC report, the JAC has highlighted several “broken promises” by the incumbent Congress government:

• Pending DAs: Four installments of Dearness Allowance (DA) remain unpaid.
• Arrear Backlog: Despite the government releasing ₹700 crore monthly, over ₹10,000 crore in pending bills (retirement benefits and medical claims) remains outstanding.
• Manifesto Conflict: Opposition leaders and union heads have pointed out that the government initially promised a new PRC within three months of assuming power.

Government’s “Legacy Debt” Defense

Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka addressed the Assembly, attributing the delay to “financial destruction” inherited from the previous administration. 

The government has cleared ₹6,146 crore in employee dues since 2024.

However, the sheer volume of unpaid arrears, estimated at over ₹40,000 crore, requires a phased approach.

The government maintains it is taking a “humane approach” by offering ₹1.25 crore accident insurance and cashless health cards.

However, the unions argue that these benefits do not compensate for the erosion of purchasing power caused by inflation.

As the JAC meets today, the threat of a “pen-down” strike looms. This signals a potential administrative shutdown across Telangana if a firm implementation date is not provided.

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