Old Pension Scheme Demand Rises Again

As the Lok Sabha election approaches, the demand for the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) is rising once again and can become one of the poll narratives. Various employee forums have initiated campaigns on this front, coupling the OPS demand with other interventions that the employees have been seeking across different states.

A major event around this narrative was witnessed in Gandhinagar, Gujarat on Friday. Employees turned out in large numbers to air the demand for the OPS, and the end of the fixed pay pattern of employment that has been in vogue for almost two decades.

The protest in Gujarat assumes special significance given that over the last three decades, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in power in the state, employee politics is often treated as being redundant. Even otherwise the space for democratic protests has considerably shrunk in the state during this while.

It was only ahead of the last Assembly polls in 2022 that there were rumblings of discontent among the employees. Now, ahead of the 2024 elections, a massive assembly of employees from different districts of the state, collectively aired their grievances with regards to the OPS implementation.

The employees now plan to organise a ‘Pension Sankalp March’ from Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad to Dandi in South Gujarat. “We will try to mobilise the employees during this event by holding public meetings at places like Kheda, Nadiad, Anand, Vadodara, Bharuch and Surat before reaching Dandi that holds a special place in India’s history of non violent democratic protest,” Rakesh Kantharia of Gujarat unit of National Old Pension Restoration United Front (NOPRUF) said. The NOPRUF was one of the organisers of Friday’s protest near Pathik Ashram in Gandhinagar.

“The central government had announced formation of a committee to look into the employees’ demand on OPS. We are awaiting the government’s decision on its implementation,” Kantharia added.

He explained that ahead of the 2022 assembly polls, the employees had taken up the issue with the state government but the government succeeded in ‘diluting’ the demand by offering some other sops. “We need to understand that Gujarat is the prime example of what the BJP calls a ‘Double Engine’ government.

Whatever the state government does here comes on the directions of the central government,” he said.

Government employees, despite numbering around five lakh, have hardly had any impact on the electoral politics in the state. This has also been evident from the results of the postal ballots in different elections where government employees cast their votes.

“But the fight for our rights needs to be carried out,” Kantharia added.

Protestors were seen carrying placards and banners that read: “‘Purani pension adhikar hamara (Old Pension Scheme is our right)’” and “‘Ekj maang, ekj naaro Juni pension adhikar amaro (One demand, one slogan, old pension is our right’” and chanted “ OPS… OPS” as they marched to the protest site.

Sources disclosed that the protests at the district level have been going on for quite some time, but were being ignored by embedded media.

On February 14 and 15, the employees had worn black armbands seeking re-implementation of the OPS and addressing of other pending issues. On February 16, many had turned up to work in black clothes. This was accompanied by submitting memorandums to different administrative authorities in the districts.

The different employees’ organisations have collectively submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel. They have explained why the New Pension Scheme (NPS) is not in the interest of the employees.

Meanwhile, the National Movement for Old Pension Scheme (NMOPS) that had organised a massive demonstration at Ramlila maidan in October last year, has started a new drive. Employees are being asked to send emails to the offices of the President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the OPS.

This drive that began on February 19 will continue till February 25. This is to be followed by a twitter storm.

In a letter addressed to the President, the NMOPS stated, “The teachers and employees are worried about their future. The ill effects of the NPS are now coming to light where people are getting Rs 1200, Rs 1800 and Rs 2500 as pension which is insufficient to take care of the health needs or to shoulder family responsibilities.

“It is unjustified that the employees and teachers who give 30 to 35 years of their life in carving out the future of the country are now worried about their own future. When some states have implemented the OPS following sustained campaigns from employees, why are the centre and some other states reluctant to follow suit.”

“The email drive is being carried out in all the states. There are close to 60 lakh government employees. If each employee has five family members this makes it a considerable chunk of voters. We are telling the employees to vote for those who are in favour of the OPS,” Sukhjeet Singh who is the vice president of NMOPS, said.

When asked why the employees had failed to make any impact in the outcome of the recently held Assembly polls in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan where the Congress lost despite initiating the implementation of the OPS, Singh said, “One of the reasons was that these states along with Jharkhand have failed to implement the same on the pattern of Himachal Pradesh where even those who have retired are being benefited by making some contribution. We are going to continue with this campaign in the days to come.”

In the Himachal Pradesh Assembly polls that were held alongside Gujarat in 2022, the OPS had turned out to be a game changer. It had given a breather to the Congress party whose fortunes were flagging. The employees form a major chunk of voters in the hill state and have the potential to influence in every election.

Even as the employees are raising the demand for the OPS from various forums, it needs to be underlined that the issues of employment and social security have the potential to be a major narrative in the run up to the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.

With the farmers already protesting for implementing the ‘promises made to them’ with regards to the minimum support price (MSP) and other demands, the addition of employee demands can act as a multiplier in exerting pressure on the BJP. Whether the saffron party manages to offset this with emotive narratives around Hindutva and its brand of nationalism remains to be seen.