West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026: CM Mamata Raises Honorarium To ₹2,000 For Priests, Muezzins Hours Before Poll Dates Announcement

Less than two hours before the Election Commission’s announcement of the Assembly poll schedule, Mamata Banerjee made a major welfare announcement, increasing the monthly honorarium for Hindu priests and Muslim clerics in the state.

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I am pleased to announce an increase of ₹500 in the monthly honorariums extended to our purohits and muezzins, whose service sustains the spiritual and social life of our communities. With this revision, they will now receive ₹2,000 per month.

At the same time, all fresh…

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) March 15, 2026

In a post on X, the Chief Minister said the government would raise the stipend for purohits and muezzins by Rs 500, taking the total monthly assistance to Rs 2,000. She added that all pending applications submitted by eligible beneficiaries have also been approved.

Banerjee said the decision reflects the state’s commitment to supporting religious functionaries who contribute to the social and spiritual fabric of society. She emphasised that the government aims to ensure dignity and recognition for custodians of diverse traditions.

I am happy to announce that our Ma-Mati-Manush government has delivered on its promise to all its employees and pensioners, and to lakhs of teachers and non-teaching staff of our educational institutions, as well as employees/ pensioners of our other grant-in-aid instititions…

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) March 15, 2026

In a separate announcement, she said state government employees, pensioners, teachers, non-teaching staff, and workers of grant-in-aid institutions would begin receiving long-pending dearness allowance (DA) arrears under ROPA 2009 from March 2026. The payments will follow the modalities outlined by the Finance Department.

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The announcement came shortly before the Election Commission of India is scheduled to unveil the election timetable for Assembly polls in West Bengal and four other regions on Sunday at 4 pm.

Polling is due this year in West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Puducherry. The Commission’s full bench, led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, recently completed a review of poll preparedness in these regions.

Political observers view the timing of the announcement as significant, coming just ahead of the formal declaration of the election schedule.

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