BCCI Updates Travel Allowance Policy for Staff Members
Revised Travel Allowance Structure
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced a new travel allowance policy for its appointed staff. Previously, staff compensation was based on the length of the tournament. Under the new guidelines, all staff will receive a uniform daily rate, but they can only claim a portion of it if their travel is limited.
Under the old system, staff assigned to a short tour of four days or less received INR 15,000 per day, while those working on longer events like the Indian Premier League earned INR 10,000 daily. Given that the IPL typically lasts for over two months, a staff member could earn up to INR 7 lakhs. This same structure applied to the Women’s Premier League and various ICC or ACC events held in India, with an initial one-time payment of INR 7,500.
With the new policy, these previous payment tiers have been eliminated. All staff members will now receive INR 10,000 daily, which, after tax deductions, will amount to approximately INR 6,500.
However, there is a stipulation: those who do not need to travel extensively will have to claim a percentage of their total allowance. For instance, if a staff member does not require much travel during a tournament, they can claim 60% of the allowance, while those who do not travel at all can claim 40%.
Different Allowances for International Travel
While the new policy has equalized allowances for domestic leagues and tours, international travel compensation differs. Staff traveling abroad will receive USD 300 per day, equivalent to approximately INR 25,800.
In contrast, honorary office-bearers such as the president, secretary, treasurer, vice-president, and joint secretary will earn a daily allowance of USD 1,000 during their official overseas trips.
For meetings held within India, the compensation is set at INR 40,000 for a single-day meeting and INR 30,000 per day for extended trips.
This adjustment has led to delays in processing allowance payments since January. With the new policy in place, the BCCI aims to expedite the clearance of all outstanding payments. A BCCI official commented,
"A clear cut policy was needed in terms of allowances as some employees were claiming allowances even when they were operating out of the Mumbai headquarters during tournaments. Now that it has been devised, the dues will be cleared soon."