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Himachal announces slew of populist measures on I-Day

Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh on Thursday announced a slew of populist measures, including release of eight per cent additional Dearness Allowance for employees and pensioners from 1 January, 2014.

The chief minister also announced a hike in honorarium of freedom fighters from Rs 7,500 to Rs 10,000 per month. Norms under skill development scheme were also relaxed and age for coverage was increased from 18 to 25 years.

Presiding over the state-level Independence Day function at Mandi, Singh said the qualification for becoming eligible under the scheme has also been lowered from 12th pass to matriculation. ‘Release of DA will put a burden of Rs 4,000 crore on the state exchequer,’ the chief minister said.

The registration process has also been simplified and condition of registration with employment exchange for two years has been waived off and now the candidate should be registered with any Employment Exchange on the date of application, he said.

Applicant can now file an affidavit regarding his or her being unemployed instead of filing an employment certificate issued by a Magistrate, he said.
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