Tuesday, 30 May 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Pension Rath Yatra led by the National President of National Movement for Old Pension Scheme (NMOPS) Vijay Kumar Bandhu will enter Uttarakhand on June 10 from Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh. In order to put pressure on the State government to restore the benefit of the OPS in the State the Uttarakhand chapter of the NMOPS has thrown its full might to make the Yatra successful.
The Uttarakhand president of NMOPS, Jeetmani Painyuli said that the Pension Yatra would enter the State at Laksar in Haridwar from where it would reach Roorkee. Painyuli said that Yatra would reach Rishikesh on June 11. Conclaves would be organised in Roorkee and Rishikesh during the Yatra. He added that on June 12, the Yatra would reach Doiwala where a programme would be held in the morning. From here the Yatra would reach officers club Yamuna Colony where a mega conclave of employees would be held. The Yatra would reach Vikasnagar on the evening of June 12 from where it would head towards Saharanpur on June 13. Painyuli said that the State unit of NMOPS is visiting offices in Haridwar and Dehradun districts to make the Yatra a success. He said that a large number of teachers would also attend the Pension Yatra.
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 (DA), 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. The newly elected Congress government in Karnataka has also promised to restore OPS. It has given hope to more than 90,000 employees in Uttarakhand who are covered under NPS in the State.
