Govt. to spend Rs 1.6 b on pre-employment salaries The Government will pay salaries worth Rs 1.6 billion in total to newly employed graduates, even before they report for their first day of work, The Sunday Morning learnt. This is due to the issuance of appointment letters to 40,000 graduates last Monday (2) and the subsequent decision by the Election Commission (EC) to suspend these appointments until the conclusion of the general election. Government Spokesperson and State Minister  of Investment Promotions Keheliya Rambukwella told The Sunday Morning that each graduate would be paid a sum of Rs. 20,000 per month for a period of one year of training. “They have been given appointment letters, so they are entitled to their allowance of Rs. 20,000,” he said, adding that the fact that they will not be reporting to work is immaterial. As a result, Rs. 800 million would be spent by the Government each month, making up the total cost of Rs. 1.2 billion for March and April. Rambukwella said that the graduates would be reporting for official training from 26 April, the day after the general election. The decision by the EC was a measure to prevent the Government gaining undue political mileage through this programme heading into the general election. Therefore, the graduates have been instructed to only report to work after the election concludes. – Skandha Gunasekara