Govt employees to hold 'Family March' on November 8 to demand restoration of Old Pension Scheme in Maharashtra

NEW DELHI: Nearly 17 lakh government and semi-government employees in Maharashtra have decided to hold a "Family March" in every district and tehsil of the state on November 8 to demand restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS).

Participants of the march, to be taken out with the slogan of 'My Family, My Pension', will reach the offices of district collectors and tehsildars to press for their demand, Vishwas Katkar, convenor of a coordination committee of various organisations of state employees, said on Monday.

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The OPS was discontinued in the state in 2005. "We have decided to take out a 'Family March' in each district and tehsil on November 8 and submit our demand of restoration of the OPS. If there is no proper response, then we will go on an indefinite strike from December 14 for the demand of OPS,” Katkar said.

The employees have been disappointed with the Maharashtra government for not fulfilling their demand for the OPS, which provides an assured and reliable source of income post-retirement.

They have also been demanding cancellation of indirect privatisation of the education sector, and seeking filling up of all vacant posts.

Nearly 17 lakh government and semi-government employees will participate in the march, Katkar said. Under the OPS, a government employee gets a monthly pension equivalent to 50 per cent his/her last drawn salary.

There was no need for contribution by employees. Under the New Pension Scheme, a state government employee contributes 10 per cent of his/her basic salary plus dearness allowance with the state making a matching contribution.

The money is then invested in one of the several pension funds approved by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) and the returns are market-linked. Members of the Maratha community in the state have already been holding protests to press for their demand for reservation.

Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday said his government was committed to giving reservations in jobs and education to the Maratha community and urged youth not to take extreme steps like suicide.