HC raps govt for delaying OPS benefit

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has termed as “sorry state of affairs” the Punjab Government’s failure to implement the old pension scheme (OPS), which was notified over two years ago.

The court made the observation while hearing a petition filed by members of the Higher Judicial Services of Punjab. The notification, dated November 18, 2022, promised to extend the OPS to all government employees under the National Pension System (NPS).

However, the Bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sudhir Singh was told that the detailed scheme and standard operating procedures (SOPs) required to operationalise the decision were yet to be framed.

The Bench directed the Punjab Chief Secretary to file an affidavit explaining the reasons for the prolonged inaction and why a writ of mandamus should not be issued to ensure the implementation of the scheme.

Earlier, appearing before the Bench on behalf of the High Court, counsel Anurag Goyal submitted that the government had already “accepted to give the benefit of the Old Pension Scheme to all employees of the State of Punjab”.