New Delhi, Apr 8 (IANS): All Members of Parliament (MPs) will be paid Rs 1.03 lakh per month for "constituency allowance" and "office expense" for a period of one year from April 1.

A gazette notification issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat on Tuesday said that the decision was taken under the Members of Parliament (Office Expense Allowance) Amendment Rules, 2020. A The order will come into effect from April 1, 2020 and will be implemented till March 31, 2021.

The move followed the Union Cabinet's nod to an ordinance cutting salaries of the Prime Minister, all Ministers and sitting MPs by 30 per cent for one year in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and also to suspend the MP Local Area Development Schemes (MPLADS) for two years.

Of the Rs 1.03 lakh, the MPs will receive an amount of Rs 49,000 as "constituency allowance" and Rs 54,000 for "office allowance". Of the 54,000, the MPs will be paid Rs 14,000 for meeting the expenses of stationery items and postage and Rs 40,000 for a person that will be engaged by the MP for obtaining secretariat assistance.

"In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (f) of sub-section (3) of section 9 of the Salary,Allowance and Pension of Member of Parliament Act, 1954 (30 of 1954), the Joint Committee, after consultation with the Central government, hereby makes the following rules further to amend the Members of Parliament (Constituency Allowance) Rules, 1986 and (Office Expense Allowance) Rules, 1988, which have been approved and confirmed by the Chairman of the Council of States and the Speaker of the House of the People has required under sub-section (4) of that section," the notification said.