Islamabad (Lord Media): More than 50 federal institutions have been found to provide employees with hefty salaries and additional perks, according to official sources. Some employees reportedly earn two to three times more than officers in regular government departments. These institutions include the President’s Secretariat, Prime Minister’s Office, National Assembly Secretariat, Senate Secretariat, higher courts, National Accountability Bureau, intelligence agencies, tax authorities, and various tribunals.
The Chief Justice of Pakistan has approved a 100% increase in the utility allowance for Supreme Court employees. Other high-benefit institutions include special education, rehabilitation, health organizations, police units, and autonomous bodies. The federal government has been granting special allowances to select institutions for various reasons, resulting in multiple salary systems.
In a typical ministry, a Grade 20 officer earns less than an officer in a high-allowance institution. Critics argue that this situation disrupts the uniform basic salary system, with some bureaucrats calling it a ‘government within a government.’ The Ministry of Finance introduced a Disparity Reduction Allowance for federal secretariat employees, but most government employees remain excluded from it.
