New Delhi, Jan 16 (IANS): The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved regularisation of pay-scales of below board-level executives of the central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) in the power sector that will benefit 5,254 executives.

A Power Ministry release said that a total expenditure of Rs 323 crore will be incurred for the regularisation of pay-scales of these executives in the National Hydroelectric Power Corp (NHPC), North East Electric Power Corp (NEEPCO), THDC India (formerly Tehri Hydro Development Corp) and Satluj Jal Vidhyut Nigam (SJVN).

"Anomalies existed in the pay-scales of executives of NHPC, NEEPCO, THDCIL and SJVNL w.e.f. 01.01.1997 due to revision of pay-scales of unionised category of workmen/non-executives in line with the NTPC/oil sector within the organisations," it said.

"The pay scales of workmen and supervisors were higher than the pay-scale of executives in the E-1 grade."

The proposal was earlier considered by the Committee of Secretaries and the Cabinet on several occasions.

However, in December 2013 the Cabinet had decided that the deviant pay-scales fixed with effect from January 1, 1997, shall not be regularised, the statement said.

It also decided that the pay-scales shall be fitted with effect from January 2007 after correcting the aberration in pay-scales fixed with effect from January 1997.

Aggrieved with the order, various employee associations approached courts of law and high courts of Uttarakhand and Meghalaya quashed the Cabinet's deicisions, the statement added.