Power Board Pensioners Demand Immediate Payment of Pending Arrears, Warn of Agitation.
Shimla:
A meeting of the Sundernagar unit of the Himachal Pradesh Electricity Board Pensioners Forum was held at the Suket Cinema complex in Sundernagar under the chairmanship of unit president Er. K.S. Jamwal. A large number of retired officers and employees, ranging from senior chief engineers to line staff, as well as members of families receiving family pensions, participated in the meeting.
The meeting strongly condemned the alleged delay by the electricity board management and the Himachal Pradesh government in releasing arrears and other financial benefits to employees and officers who retired between January 1, 2016, and April 1, 2022, despite the implementation of revised pay scales.
Addressing the gathering, Unit President Er. K.S. Jamwal, General Secretary Sohan Singh Chauhan and State Deputy General Secretary Jagmel Thakur said pensioners who retired during the period had been waiting for their legitimate financial dues for several years. They expressed concern that many pensioners had died during this prolonged period, leaving their dependent families in serious financial difficulties.
The office-bearers said the Pensioners Forum had repeatedly approached both the Himachal Pradesh government and the electricity board management, requesting timely settlement of the outstanding dues. Although assurances had reportedly been given on several occasions, the pensioners claimed that effective action was still awaited.
They pointed out that employees and officers who retired between January 2016 and April 2022 had allegedly not received arrears relating to their service period and retirement benefits. According to the forum, their pension, leave encashment, gratuity and other retirement benefits have also not been revised and paid according to the applicable revised pay scales.
The pensioners also raised the issue of commuted pension recovery. They said that the recovery of commuted pension continues to be calculated at an interest rate of more than 12 per cent, based on an old rate, despite current bank interest rates being around 7 per cent. The forum demanded that the recovery rate be reduced immediately in line with prevailing interest rates.
The meeting also expressed deep concern over the alleged non-payment of 15 per cent pending Dearness Allowance (DA). The members unanimously urged the Chief Minister to approve the pending DA by August 15.
The forum further appealed to the Chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Electricity Board to convene a meeting with a delegation of the Pensioners Forum at the earliest. The delegation would seek implementation of decisions taken in earlier meetings regarding the forum’s various demands and ensure that all pending arrears are released within a fixed timeframe.
The pensioners warned that if their demands were not addressed promptly, the Electricity Board Pensioners Forum, along with the affected dependent families, would be compelled to launch an agitation and take to the streets in protest.
Several retired chief engineers and senior officials were present at the meeting, including K.D. Khosla, Pawan Sharma, R.P. Dhiman, S.S. Daihal, N.P. Sharma, B.K. Sharma, P.K. Sharma, J.P. Gupta, R.S. Chaudhary, Kapoor Singh, P.R. Parashar, S.L. Kashyap, Bal Krishan Sharma, Lalit Mahajan, Khoob Ram, Arjun Singh Chauhan, Lal Singh, Chet Ram, Dharam Singh, Brij Lal, Ganga Ram Thakur, Sher Singh Thakur, Jai Singh Thakur, Hem Prabha, Inder Singh, Jeet Ram Verma, Tek Singh Thakur, Ram Singh, Harnam Singh, Muni Lal, Shyam Lal, Yogesh Prakash, Prem Singh, Rikhhi Ram and Narpat Ram, among others.
