OPS given on humanitarian grounds, not for political gains: Himachal CM

Dharamshala/Shimla, Dec 4 (PTI) The issue of restoration of the old pension scheme (OPS) for employees of the Himachal Pradesh government led by Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu immediately after coming to power resurfaced in the Assembly on Thursday with Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur accusing the government of lying in this matter and the CM clarifying that the decision was taken on humanitarian grounds.

Responding to Thakur's question, the chief minister said that the implementation of OPS had adversely affected the state's treasury. Despite this, the government has implemented OPS for 1.36 lakh employees and this decision was made not for political gain, but on humanitarian grounds so that employees can live a respectable life after retirement.

Calling this decision historic, the chief minister said that due to this decision, the central government has reduced Himachal's annual additional borrowing limit by Rs 1,600 crore, which has worsened the state's financial situation.

He said that since the Congress came to power, 26,324 employees and officers have retired in the state, of whom 5,356 have been granted OPS. He said that 7,053 employees will join OPS in 2022-23, 7,217 in 2023-24 and 6,698 in 2024-25.

The chief minister said that while OPS will increase the financial burden on the state treasury, the government is committed to implementing OPS and is mobilising additional revenue resources for it. He said that if the government wanted to implement OPS for political gains, it could have done so six months before the elections.

The chief minister said approximately Rs 10,000 crore of National Pension Scheme (NPS) contributions for state employees and officers are deposited with the central government and added that the state government is working to obtain this money.

Correspondence is ongoing with the central government, and ultimately, this money will be transferred to the state government's treasury. Only then will employees receive the OPS benefits, he added.

Thakur alleged that the question had been answered in a half-hearted manner, which is not correct.

He asked whether the government would take action against officials who provided such incomplete answers. He said the OPS guarantee was given to gain political advantage during the assembly elections. BJP MLA Randhir Sharma also asked a question in this regard. PTI BPL KSS KSS