Police association urges Fadnavis to give Diwali bonus to Maharashtra police instead of advance

Nagpur: A demand is gaining ground that the advance Maharashtra Police personnel receive every year at Diwali be waived and given as a bonus. Amit Shivmani Dubey, Nagpur city and rural district president of the Police Boys Association, has written to Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis in this regard.

The letter says Maharashtra Police personnel serve the public round the clock, following the motto "Sadrakshanaya Khalanigrahanaya". There are no fixed duty hours. As a result, they suffer serious ailments such as piles, high blood pressure and diabetes, as well as mental stress. According to the letter, many personnel even take the extreme step of suicide because of this. From the Covid period to date, many police personnel have sacrificed their lives in the service of the public.

The association said the police are given an advance of Rs 12,500 every year at Diwali, of which Rs 1,250 is deducted from their salary each month. The association says this is plain injustice to the police.

Dubey has demanded that, just as the Centre has decided to give a Diwali bonus to railway employees, Maharashtra Police personnel too be given a Diwali bonus. He wants the advance to be waived and paid as a bonus, with no deduction from salary. According to him, if this happens, police families too can enjoy the festival.

A copy of the letter has also been sent to the Director General of Police, Maharashtra State. The letter makes only one plea for now: that police personnel get a bonus instead of an advance at Diwali, and that the monthly deduction from their salary be stopped.