With due respect to Dr.Hasmukh Adhia, Secretary, Dept. of Financial Services, it is submitted that he may not act, talk or be more loyal than the king !
Every sincere citizen of this country wants that there should be all round development. Every member of society rich or poor, young or old, man or woman, Hindu or Muslim or Sikh or Christian or...should be able to live with minimum dignity. No one dies for want of food or medical aid. Uplift those belonging to unorganised sector, those living below the poverty line . Dr. Adhia's concern for the millions is no different from many of his predecessors and many of us.
There may not be any need to start all together new schemes. The number of persons living below poverty line, number of illiterate etc. would have reduced / would reduce to negligible percentage if the existing poverty alleviation etc. programmes of Government were / are implemented sincerely sans corruption. It is good if Dr. Adhia has been specially drafted by the PM to ensure to reach the fruits of the freedom to poor and down trodden at the earliest. By virtue of his now being the Secretary, DFS, Dr. Adhia is nominated on the Board of Directors of the RBI, LIC and few other institutions. A person of his cadre and calibre have many responsibilities. He may have to meet at these institutions a class of senior and very senior citizens, pensioners with their unresolved pension related issues. Many of their cases pending in various courts, the High Courts and the Supreme Court for decades. Dr.Adhia may kindly not brush aside the pensioners who approach him for redressal, by expressing fear of 'rippling effect' in other organisations/industries. Every paise belongs to the State. Late Jawaharlal Nehru, our first PM, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, and other framers of the Indian Constitution were great visionaries.
Dr.Adhia and those in the and at the helm of Government know that pensioners and family pensioners of GOI - including Cabinet Secretary, Secretary, Jt. Secretary - updation of pension along with the revision of scales of pay of serving employees, the pensioners and family pensioners of State Governments, Courts etc. also get revision of pension. Can anybody term it as " Ripple Effect? ". All they get is what is rightfully due to them. It is as per guidelines/instructions as provided in the recommendations of the Vth Central Pay Commission Report.
Applicability of recommendations of the Commission to Pensioners of State Govts. / RBI / Autonomous Bodies.
While most of the State Givernments adopt the recommendations of the CPCs in regard to pensionary benefits, other set up their own Pay Commissions for determination of the pensionary benefits of their employees. Suggestions have been made by a number of Pensioners' associations that there should be complete parity in retiral benefits among employees of Central and State Governments and Autonomous Organisations, which have been financed wholly or partly by the Central or State Governments. While there can be little doubt about the use and advantage of having a uniform pattern of retirement benefits for the employees of Central and State Governments and Autonomous Organizations, we feel it would not be appropriate for us to put fetters on the discretion and authority of State Governments or Autonomous Organisations to determine the conditions of service and quantum of pensionary benefits to their employees taking into account their own financial position and the peculiar circumstances of each State.
It has been clarified at different times and different platforms and courts that the financial position of Life Insurance Corporation is sound, at no time need budgetary support, to meet the increase in fund requirement on account of periodical revision of pension of the past, the present and the future pensioners and 100% neutralisation in dearness relief to pre August 1997 retirees. The pensioners of Banks are strong enough to realise their demands of 100% neutralisation in dearness relief and updation of pension. No fund crunch. Their problems have remained unsolved for years at the hands of the IBA and the GOI because of unyielding attitude not to accept the genuine demands honourably. It is as if they do not want shoulder responsibility. All they want that the Courts decode all issues involved and decide. They continue the keep the court cases alive by filing cases in different courts till the highest court of the country admonishes them. In these relentless legal battles waged by them, the pensioners have to suffer for years though the Supreme Court has observed long back that the pension should be fixed, revised periodically in order to compensate continuous fall in rupee and price rise to enable pensioners live in dignity and self respect.
Incidentally, it is surprising to note that the GoI pensioners are also obliged to fight for their rightful dues in the Courts for many years despite clear instructions in the matter.
CAT had ruled that all the eligible pre-2006 pensioners be given 50% of the revised pay scales granted to serving employees (as per a table) w.e.f. 01-01-2006. A few pensioners had to file petitions in the High Court. The GOI filed SLPs in the Supreme Court. The Court dismissed all SLPs and also the curative petition filed by the govt. Despite the final dismissal, the Min.of Finance and Min. of Law chose to pay revised, enhanced pension from 01-01-2006 to qua petitioners, only to those who filed petitions! The remaining pensioners who got enhanced pension from a prospective date viz. 24-09-2012 are denied of arrears from 01-01-2006. There again the pensioners' struggle continues in the Courts. All the learned officials of Law and Finance are not ignorant that the GOI has accepted the recommendations V and VI CPCs to revise the pension and family pension on certain norms retrospectively from 01-01-1996 and 01-01-2006. When rectifying an anomaly in fitment of pension to pre 2006, why from a prospective date and later on change the date to retrospective from 01-01-2006 to those who did petition the CAT / Court! Is it not injudicious? Is it not imprudent?
After a long struggle, the pre -1996 Medical Officers of Central Govt. are to get the benefit of Non Practising Allowance added to their pension with effect from 01-01-1996.(May see the note posted in PC on 05-12-2014.) There are few more such cases of Court Judges, Railways,etc.
It is equally disturbing to know that these departments have caused immense mental agony, financial loss to the LIC pensioners by dilly dallying the imple-It is difficult to understand why the GOI's MOL, Department of Law Affairs, MOF, Department of Financial Services force their own pensioners to fight the legal battles for years putting the pensioners to suffer physically and financially.
mentation of cases long decided. Such ill advised, perpetuated actions by the Govt. betray the faith in the legal system of GOI and eventually the Indian Judiciary. There may be more to it than meets the eye. It gives room for doubt if there is any 'tacit' understanding among the professionals? All this is a layman's feeling / doubt based on simple analyses of a few court cases dragged undecided for decades / decided after unreasonably long time. RTI?
SN (a 1992 pensioner)
( From Sources )