LIC PENSIONERS CHRONICLE

In our legal fight to secure DR Relief for pre 8/97 and updation of pension alongwith every wage revision, it looks we are at a crucial if not critical stage.

Keep aside the organisations of inservice employees. They hold their ideas close to their chest and they are not parties to legal battle. The wage agreement is due for revision from 8/2012 . One union gives the impression that they want pension improvement also from this new wage period and not earlier.

Two organisations of Pensioners (i) AIRIEF and (ii) Class I Officers' Fed. have the responsibility to carry on the legal fight in Supreme Court in 8/2014. If both organisations desire the same benefit they can put forth a united plea before S.C. Armed with Jaipur verdict AIRIEF says it is striving to get both (i) DR relief and (ii) Updation of Pension (ab-initio.) 

In between there has been much of kite flying with several ideas doing the rounds. If we analyse, the ideas boil down to .....Both DR and updation retrospectively, DR only, Yes for updation but prospectively. Then some would quote RBI developments i.e., revision of wage once in a decade and updation of pension alongwith another option for pension.

With the installation of a new Government which is perceived to be dynamic and decision taking, lobbying at political level has been going on. Till now Shri Venkaiah Naidu and Mrs. Nirmala Seetharaman were contacted with efforts going on at apex level to talk to FM. All this in the hope that some progress can be made before the case comes up before the Supreme Court. Let us wish success to all these trials. But our own trials and tribulations continue.

Some people say that they are willing to help the GOI/LIC to find a solution. What would be its shape must atleast be clear to the proponents of this line of action. For the time being the idea is not in public domain.But there are apprehensions that it would be watering down of Justice Bhandari's verdict.

In such a scenario, even if some activists wish that the parties to legal dispute present a united plea before the bench in SC, it looks not possible. The precondition would be that both the organisations must first agree on what can be a common plea. If each of them has a different solution to the problem, no useful result would come out, notwithstanding the honest intentions of individuals. Where do the two organisations stand in respect of the basic demands? This must be made clear and public. 


A time has come when the parties to legal battle announce the name/s of their representatives authorised to speak on behalf of the organisation and also LIAISE on behalf of their organisation. If someone who wants to be a freelancer is included in delegations and gets photographed with Ministers, it may be a good publicity for that person but not for organisations. 

Time to keep the heat away from cool thinking. Afterall this is the time when fireworks appear.