RSS backed-Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh asks govt to restore Old Pension Scheme

The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), the labour arm of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), on Wednesday organised a protest at Jantar Mantar, demanding restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) and scrapping the present New Pension Scheme (NPS).

In response to a call given by the Government Employees National Confederation (GENC), which is an industrial unit of BMS, scores of employees from railways, defence, postal, central government establishments, and local bodies participated in this agitation.

The protesters demanded the government to have the three fundamental components- the restoration of a guaranteed pension amounting to a minimum of 50 per cent of the last basic pay; provision of dearness relief for price neutralisation; and a commitment to revising pensions in line with subsequent Central Pay Commissions' (CPC) recommendations.

The demonstration was presided over by Vipan Kumar Dogra, vice president of GENC, Hiranmay Pandya, all-India president of BMS, Ravindra Himte, general secretary of BMS.

Addressing the gathering, the speakers echoed their concerns, emphasising that the central government had discontinued the Old Pension Scheme from January 1, 2004, ushering in the defined contributory pension scheme (NPS).

The move, initiated through an ordinance on December 22, 2003, gained legal standing with the passage of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Bill in September 2013. Since its inception, Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh and its affiliated federations and unions have opposed NPS, labelling it a non-guaranteed, market-based contributory pension scheme.

Before January 1, 2004, the Old Pension Scheme provided a non-contributory guarantee, ensuring that 50 per cent of the last salary became the pension upon retirement. Additionally, the scheme was intricately linked to the price index, resulting in the receipt of dearness allowance twice a year in January and July. Government employees, who feel deprived of their rightful pension under the guise of social security, are now appealing to the Government of India (GoI) to abolish the New Pension Scheme and reinstate the Old Pension Scheme.