HT Correspondent
SIVASAGAR, Oct 7: About two hundred government employees
led by the leaders of Saday Asom Karmachari Parishad( SAKP)
on Saturday staged three hours protest demonstration in front
of Sivasagar District Commissioner’s Office against the National
(New) Pension Policy or NPS launched by the union government
nationwide in 2004.
The demonstrators demanded the re-introduction of the Old
Pension Scheme. The employees with play cards and banners
condemned the present government’s alleged anti-employee
policies and vowed not to cast their votes in the next elections
in favour of the ruling party if their demand is not met. Bhaskar
Biswanath , president, SAKP, Sivasagar district unit said that the
recently retired government employees working under NPS
have received retirement benefits ranging between Rs 500 to
Rs 1000 only. It is an injustice to the new employees working
for the government as the retired employee will be in dire strait
immediately after his retirement, he said. The NPS Employees
Association’s leaders threatened the government that it would
face the consequences if their demand is neglected any further.
Our Margherita Correspondent adds: Margherita District
Karmachari Parishad on Saturday staged 3 hours sit in
demonstration at North Margherita Rangamancha in
demanding the removal of New Pension Scheme and
reinstatement of Old pension scheme.
Members of Margherita District Karmachari Parishad members
demanded that they should get pension under the OPS and not
under the NPS.
The protestors said that the amount given as pension under the
NPS is quite low and not enough to sustain in retired life.
Some of us are getting Rs 800, Rs 900 or Rs 1200 each month in
the name of pension how can we survive at this old age with
only this much amount of money? Hence we are demanding
that Assam government should take a justified approach
towards us said Lakhyadhar Sonowal president and Chintu
Baruah general secretary of Margherita District Karmachari
Parishad.
“If a minister, MLA and MP can get lifelong pension after public
service for just five years then why some of us who have
worked for eight years or ten years cannot get the OPS? What
kind of system is this? If the government wants to push NPS for
some monetary relief, then they can do it. But they have to
consider the injustice that has been meted out to us which we
don’t want,” said Chintu Baruah.
The protestors further said that they would continue their
agitation if their demands are not met at the earliest.
