Sunday, 26 March 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The decision of the Union government to review the New Pension Scheme (NPS) is being welcomed by the employees of the Uttarakhand government covered under the scheme. The employees covered under the NPS are consistently demanding that the NPS should be dissolved and they should be brought under the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) which is more lucrative for them. On Friday, the Union Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said that the NPS would be reviewed and efforts would be made to safeguard the interests of the employees.
A health worker posted in Dehradun district and covered under the NPS said , “ The decision of the finance minister has provided a ray of hope to thousands of employees covered under the scheme in the State. Some of the employees who were covered in the new scheme have retired and they are receiving pensions as low as Rs 2500 per month as pension. This is the reason we are demanding restoration of OPS,’’ he said. A teacher posted in Vikasnagar area of Dehradun said, “The government should fix a minimum amount of the pension under the NPS.’’
The president of the Uttarakhand chapter of the National Movement for Old Pension Scheme (NMOPS) Jeetmani Painyuli said that the agitation of the employees for restoration of OPS has started yielding results and now the government is forced to review the NPS. He added that instead of the review of NPS the government should accept the demand of the employees and restore the benefit of OPS. Painyuli said that only OPS would provide social security to the employees and would give a chance to lead a life of dignity after retirement.
The New Pension Scheme (NPS) was started in the year 2004 by the Manmohan Singh government to reduce the burden of pension on the State exchequer. Over the years the employees found the NPS non lucrative and are demanding the restoration of OPS in which the retiring employee gets 50 per cent of his last drawn salary as pension. In the OPS the employees also get the benefit of dearness allowance, family pension and commutation. Under the pressure of the employee associations, the State governments of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have dismantled the NPS and restored the OPS for their employees. It has given hope to more than 90,000 employees in Uttarakhand who are covered under NPS in the State.
