OPS heat reaches Delhi; Ram Lila Ground to host protesting unions
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, August 6: The National Joint Committee, representing the Central and state government employees, will hold a rally at the Ram Lila Ground on Thursday to press for the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). The rail unions have also joined the protest. With Monsoon session of Parliament in session, the unions from across the country are pressing for the acceptance of their demands to restore the OPS.
The convener of the rail union Shiv Gopal Mishra said in a statement that the employees of the railways from across the country will take part in the protest rally at the Ram Lila Ground. Mishra added that members of unions representing the Central and state government employees, including teachers and the railway workers, will take part in the protest rally in the national capital.
It may be noted that demand for the restoration of the OPS has become an electoral issue. The Congress committed to restore the OPS in the just concluded Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka Assembly elections. The Congress has also promised the restoration of the OPS in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.
The new pension scheme (NPS) backed by a parliamentary law had come in effect from 2004. It is based on contribution. In contrast, the OPS had assured guarantee corpus. While the first beneficiary of the NPS will come out in 2034 only, the unions are up in arms against the pension prospects claiming that they would receive paltry payouts upon superannuation. For instance, Rs 25000, half of the last salary as per the OPS, a loco pilot drawing a salary of Rs 50000 per month in the Railways, claim the Union leaders, may get as low as just Rs 2500 under the NPS.
Finance Ministry has constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the Finance Secretary to examine the issues raised by the unions against the NPS even while the experts have warned that reverting back to the OPS would entail a devastating financial trails for the Central and the state governments.
However, the BJP is struggling to challenge the Congress on the issue of the restoration of the OPS. While the government only need to worry about the pension payouts in 2034, the politics behind is sweating out the BJP.
About The Author
