Telangana employees stage protests demanding scrapping of CPS and restoration of OPS

Government employees, pensioners and others staged protests across Telangana demanding abolition of the Contributory Pension Scheme and restoration of the Old Pension System. They also sought constitution of the Pay Revision Commission, pending DA instalments and clearance of bills.

Hyderabad: Government employees, pensioners and others staged protests at the Secretariat and various places across the State on Tuesday, demanding that the Congress government abolish the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and reintroduce the Old Pension System (OPS).

Sporting black badges and holding placards, the employees raised slogans against the government during their lunch break and observed the day as “Pension Betrayal Day”. Their other key demands included constitution of the Pay Revision Commission (PRC), payment of six pending Dearness Allowance (DA) instalments and clearance of Rs 10,000 crore in pending bills.

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The employees questioned why CPS was being imposed on government employees when MLAs, MPs and Ministers were not covered by the scheme.

The Congress, in its election manifesto, had promised to abolish CPS and reintroduce OPS. It had also assured government employees that a new Pay Revision Committee would be constituted and its recommendations implemented within six months of coming to power.

Responding to a call by the Telangana Employees, Officers, Teachers and Pensioners Joint Action Committee (TGEJAC), nearly 13 lakh employees, teachers and faculty members participated in the protests at government offices, schools and colleges across Telangana.

TGEJAC Chairman Maram Jagadeeshwar said it had been over 32 months since the Congress government came to power, but the promises had not been fulfilled. He was speaking at a protest organised by the Commercial Taxes Department Gazetted Officers’ Forum at Gagan Vihar.

TGEJAC Secretary General Eluri Srinivasa Rao questioned the fairness of imposing CPS on government employees who serve the public for over 30 years while allowing MLAs, MPs and Ministers, who serve as public representatives for five years, to retain the Old Pension System.

The employees also stressed that payment of salaries on the first day of every month was the government’s responsibility and should not be treated as an act of benevolence.

TGOs State General Secretary B Shyam demanded that Ministers and senior officials take immediate steps to ensure that the new Employees’ Health Scheme (EHS) becomes fully operational in all hospitals.

“Employees are an integral part of the public and are not asking for freebies. Accumulated GPF and TGLI funds should be released immediately upon application,” he said.

He called upon employees to make the “Chalo Hyderabad” programme on September 10 a success if their issues were not resolved by September 9.

Similar protests were held in front of the District Collector’s Office in Nalgonda and at other places across the State.