Letters: One step at a time

The edit “Hasten slowly” (June 8) has some timely advice that should be taken seriously by the authorities concerned. Post-LPG (liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation), we have been in an unnecessary hurry to mimic western patterns that have almost failed in the West. This applies more to social security arrangements, especially relating to financial products. The haste shown in dismantling the central pension scheme is a case that needs review.

The last Central Pay Commission argued for the discontinuation of the defined benefit pension system for central government employees who joined from 2004 because that would need the creation of a “Pension Fund” with a corpus of Rs 3.25 lakh crore. Though the creation of a fund to part-finance future pension payments found mention in the Pay Commission report, nothing was heard on the topic again. There cannot be two views on the need for a broader equity market and the case for creating opportunities for pension funds to participate in such a market. But this should not come as regulatory orders. As the edit correctly observed, the idea should be sold patiently over time by scripting convincing success stories. The government and public sector organisations should not tamper with the present social-security structure of which established pension schemes are an integral part.

M G Warrier, Mumbai