Pensioners demand release of pending financial, medical benefits

The Himachal Pradesh Pensioners Joint Struggle Committee has demanded immediate release of pending financial and medical benefits, warning the state government of statewide protest if their concerns are not addressed.

The committee, representing 18 organisations of pensioners across the state, held its state-level meeting at the Vishwakarma Temple in Mandi under the chairmanship of Suresh Thakur. District convener Hem Singh Thakur welcomed delegates from all districts, while Inder Pal Sharma conducted the proceedings and invited district conveners and presidents to share their views and formulate a concrete future action plan.

The committee’s key demands include payment of revised gratuity, commutation and leave encashment to all pensioners who retired between January 1, 2016, and January 31, 2022. The dues are pending for years. The pensioners also urged the government to release the remaining arrears under the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations, noting that only one instalment of Rs 50,000 was paid by the previous government and employees of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) did not receive even that.

Members expressed concern that no medical bill reimbursements have been made for the past five years and cases related to revised pay matrix benefits for pensioners and family pensioners remain pending in the office of the Accountant General for over a year. They further demanded the release of 13% pending Dearness Relief (DR) and arrears for 111 months.

The committee also called for implementation of revised pension for Local Urban Body employees from January 1, 2016, similar benefits for police pensioners as given to ex-servicemen and cashless medical facilities for retired police personnel. Other demands included medical allowances for pensioners of boards and corporations, timely pension disbursement for HRTC pensioners and implementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) in the Electricity Board.

Chairman Suresh Thakur warned that if the government fails to hold talks with pensioners within a week, the committee will stage a protest during the upcoming winter session in Dharamsala. The meeting concluded with the resolve to continue the united struggle until all legitimate demands are fulfilled.