The Indian government has cleared a 24% salary hike for Members of Parliament (MPs), with the new pay scale coming into effect retrospectively on April 1, 2023. The move increases the salaries, allowances, and pensions of both current and former MPs to be on par with inflation and cost-of-living increases.

How Much Will Indian MPs Earn Now?

With the fresh pay raise, MPs in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha will now get a monthly salary of ₹1.24 lakh, up from ₹1 lakh.

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Also, their daily sitting allowance has gone up from ₹2,000 to ₹2,500.

For former MPs, the pension for the month has increased to ₹31,000, from ₹25,000. The additional pension for each additional year of service (above five years) has also gone up, from ₹2,000 to ₹2,500 a month.

In addition to salaries and pensions, MPs still get a number of perks, such as:

  • Office and constituency allowances

  • Free travel

  • Government housing

The updated salaries will make the government spend an additional ₹3,386.82 crore every year on all 788 MPs (543 in Lok Sabha and 245 in Rajya Sabha), according to a report by Mint.

How Do Indian MPs’ Salaries Compare to the Average Indian?

The salary of an Indian MP is more than eight times the average income of an Indian.

India’s per capita income in 2022-23 was ₹1.72 lakh annually (about ₹14,333 per month), according to figures released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.

Which implies:

An MP sitting has nine times an average Indian worker’s salary.

A retired MP on pension draws over twice the national average.

Opponents feel that it is not good when lawmakers set their own salary increases. Most of them feel that it should be done by an independent commission rather. The problem has received a fresh wave of attention following a failure of most salaries across the country to rise in tandem with inflation and rising cost of living.

How Do Indian MPs’ Salaries Compare to Global Lawmakers?

United Kingdom

Present salary: £91,346 per annum (~₹1.04 crore)

Boost from April 2024: 2.8% rise to £93,904

Decided by: Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA)

United States

Fixed salary: $174,000 (~₹1.5 crore) since 2009

No automatic cost-of-living adjustment for 15 years

Perks: Paid travel, housing allowances

A bill to raise US lawmakers’ pay by $6,600 (3.8%) was defeated last year.

Australia

New salary (July 2024): A$233,650 (~₹1.3 crore)

Decided by: Remuneration Tribunal (independent body)

PM’s salary: A$607,500 (~₹3.3 crore)

Opposition Leader’s salary: A$432,250 (~₹2.3 crore)

The median annual full-time salary in Australia is A$98,218, while the median income is A$67,600.

Pakistan

  • Recent hike for MPs: 188% increase

  • New salary: PKR 519,000 (~₹1.5 lakh per month)

Japan

MPs’ annual salary: ¥25.3 million (~₹1.4 crore)

Canada

  • Base salary: $203,100 (~₹1.2 crore)

  • PM’s salary: $406,200 (~₹2.5 crore)

  • Cabinet Ministers, House Speaker, and Opposition Leader receive an additional $96,800 (~₹58 lakh)

  • Upcoming hike (April 2024): MPs expected to get a $6,700 (~₹4 lakh) raise

The 24% pay increase for Indian MPs has raised controversy, especially when wage growth in most industries is sluggish. The opposition feels that MPs should not be allowed to determine their own salary increases and propose using an independent commission-based system like the UK and Australia.

In the meantime, the new remuneration positions Indian MPs at the top compared to the rest of the nation but below legislative members in rich economies such as the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.