Demand for Restoration of Old Pension Scheme | 10 Jun 2024

Why in News?

Recently, during a gathering of the Pension Bahali Sangarsh Samiti in Kaithal, it was decided to hold a large demonstration in Panchkula on 1^st September 2024 to demand for the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS).

Key Points

• Before the rally, the association has decided to hold “OPS sankalp sammelan and aakrosh march” in every district of the state, starting from 1^st July 2024.
• Old Pension Scheme:
  • The scheme guarantees a lifelong income after retirement.
  • Under the old scheme, employees get a pension under a predetermined formula which is equivalent to 50% of the last drawn salary. They also get the benefit of the revision of Dearness Relief (DR), twice a year. The payout is fixed and there was no deduction from the salary. Moreover, under the OPS, there was the provision of the General Provident Fund (GPF).
    • GPF is available only for all the government employees in India. Basically, it allows all the government employees to contribute a certain percentage of their salary to the GPF and the total amount that is accumulated throughout the employment term is paid to the employee at the time of retirement.
  • The Government bears the expenditure incurred on the pension. The scheme was discontinued in 2004.