Employees’ body plans agitation for pension

Our Correspondent

NURPUR, FEBRUARY 11

The Himachal Pradesh New Pension Scheme (NPS) Employees’ Federation has announced a statewide agitation from the next month for its demand to restore old pension scheme prevailing in the state before 2003.

 The association held its meeting which was presided over by Naresh Thakur, state president of the association, and chalked out its strategy for the proposed stir.

In a joint statement, Naresh Thakur and Sanjiv Guleria, president and senior vice-president, respectively, said at present as many as 70,000 government employees in the state had been deprived of the pension benefit after their appointment from May 15, 2003 following an MoU signed between the then state and the Central governments. They lamented under the NPS the retired employees were either being deprived of their pension or getting merely Rs 1,500 to 5,100 per month. 

They said the federation had announced that it would support only that political party in the coming Assembly elections in the state which would support its cause and assure to restore old pension scheme.

The NPS employees federation has also opposed the Pension Fund Regulatory Development Authority (PFRDA) for enhancing its commission from 0.01 per cent to 0.1 per cent being deducted in the pension share contribution of the employees. Terming the enhancement of commission a blow to employees the federation has alleged that the Central government had allowed this enhancement under the pressure of capitalists and to benefit private companies.