DoT plan to absorb staff hangs fire

The Department of Telecom's plans to absorb 2,200 Indian Telecom Service officers in BSNL and MTNL hangs fire with no headway in the talks over key issues like promotion and pension. The officers are at present on a deputation basis in the two PSUs.

"DoT is negotiating with them on the 3Ps "" promotion, pension and pay-scale. Talks were held in a cordial manner and large areas were covered to everybody's satisfaction but there were differences on certain issues," sources said.

They added that DoT had assured the ITS officers that they would be given promotion after they were absorbed into BSNL and MTNL and that such promotion would not be inferior to what they were having then. It would be given on a seniority basis.

On the other contentious issue of pension, DoT had assured them that it would be paid by the government.

In case of ad-hoc officials also, DoT had stated that they would be given the same point-to-point fitment from CDA-to-IDA (central dearness allowance-industrial dearness allowance) which would benefit over 1,200 officials.

Payscales would not be detrimental to their interests, adding those who did not agree to these terms would be put under 'surplus cell' of DoT. The telecom department had, in March this year, asked all the 2,200 ITS cadre officers to opt for either of the two PSUs.

It had set several deadlines to submit their requests with the last one being September 10. "The terms and conditions including salary, pension and promotion avenues, that DoT is offering are not favourable to us," ITSA President SS Sirohi said.