Bharat Pensioners Samaj reply to 7th CPC questionnaire-Revised draft
Ms Meena Agarwal
Secretary GOI Seventh Central Pay Commission
Post Box No 4599 Hause Khas
P.O. New Delhi -110016
e.mail: secy-7cpc@nic.in
Madam,
Subject: 7th CPC Questionnaire
Reference: D.O. No 7cpc/15/questionnaire dated 9th April 2014
‘Bharat Pensioners Samaj’. One of the identified
Pensioners’ Federation by GOI M/O Personnel, PG &
Pensions-DOP& PW and a stake holder. In its capacity as one of the
oldest & largest Pensioners Organization with over 500 Affiliated
Associations, submits hereunder its reply to the questionnaire issued
vide your D.O. No 7cpc/15/questionnaire dated 9th April 2014.
As Pension is not independent of Salary. Salary structure also, is a
matter of concern to pensioners. However, Bharat Pensioners Samaj
limits its answers to Question Nos 1.1,1.2 , 10.1 & 10.1.2 under
the heads ‘Salary’ & ‘Pension’ .
Q.1.1 The consideration on which the minimum and maximum salary in
case of the lowest group c’ functionary and the maximum salary in case
of a secretary level officer may be determined and what should be the
ratio between the two.
Ans. Socialistic structure of the country , constitutional
provisions for equality & reduction of vast inequality in income
& wealth between highest and lowest paid should be the main
considerationfor fixing maximum & minimum Salary.
The Ratio between maximum & minimum of Salary be brought down
to 1: 9. Ensuring uniformly equal % rise in Salary of all employees by
adopting a common multiplication factor.
4th CPC had determined the ratio between minimum & maximum of
salary to be 10.7(Chapter 41 & 43). In accordance with the basic
fiber of a socialistic State this ratio should have gone reducing Pay
Commission after Pay Commission. Even in capitalist countries like
America & Britain this ratio is 1: 3.3 &1:5 respectively? In
countries with weaker economy like Philippines this is 1: 9.5. VI CPC
adopted conversion factor of 1.86 to arrive at the minimum of lowest
pay Band, where as it adopted a factor of 3.37 for arriving at the
highest scale. This shredded the very basic fiber of the Constitution of
Indian Socialistic State by raising the ratio between minimum &
maximum of Salary to 1: 12.85. This negative and socially regressive
effect of the 6th Central Pay Commission has had the effect of worsening
wealth and income inequality not only between pre-and post-2006
retirees, but even within pre-2006 retirees wherein higher-ups got full
parity in Pension(Through modified parity) .Adoption of a ratio of 1:9
between minimum & maximum paid will therefore rectify to some extent
the injustice done so far .
Defence Employee:
As far as Armed forces are concerned they do the supreme sacrifice
for the country & must be the highest paid .For them the ratio
between lowest & highest paid must not be more than 1:5.
Q.1.2 What should be the consideration for determining salary for
various levels of functions between the highest level and the lowest
level functionaries?
Ans. Equal % rise in Salary of all employees should be the main
consideration .Revise the highest existing Salary first. Divide the
revised maximum Salary by 9 to arrive at the revised minimum Salary.
Divide the revised minimum salary by existing salary. The factor so
arrived may be adopted as common multiplication factor.
Q. No 10.1 New pension Scheme i.e The
retirement benefits of all Central Government employees appointed on or
after 1.1.2004 are covered by the New Pension Scheme (NPS).
What has been the experience of the NPS in the last decade?
Ans. Withdraw New Pension Scheme: for following reasons:
(i) Pension of Govt. employees is a deferred wage. Since wage paid out to them
during the course of work tenure is kept low by design, to cater for pension.
(ii) He/She forgoes with interest 8.33% of govt. matching contribution to PF.
(iii) Pension is a social security measure & cannot be subjected in any way to Market risks
(iv) It does not guarantee minimum return & thus lacks the
basic fiber of Social Security Scheme (iv). It is in no way better than
the existing Pension Scheme .
(v)It does not provide guaranteed Family Pension to dependents
& disabled siblings which exist in present scheme, even in case of
spouse & dependent parents where death of the employee occur in
early years of service there is no adequate social security.
Q. 10.1.2 i.e. As for as pre 2004 appointees are
concerned, what should be the principles that govern the structure of
pension and retirement benefits?
Ans. 1.Keeping in view the Socialistic structure of the country ,
constitutional provisions & to reduce vast inequality between have
& have lots, it is proposed: The Ratio between maximum &
minimum of Pension be brought down to 9:1. Ensuring uniformly equal
rise in Pension of all pensioners, irrespective of pre- retiral status.
By adopting common multiplication factor for revision of Pension,
raising the ratio between minimum & maximum pension to 1:12.85 by
6thCPC , instead of reducing it, was unconstitutional.
7th pay commission is requested to first workout the top most
revised pension, divide it by 9 to arrive at the minimum revised pension
& then derive a uniform multiplication factor by dividing minimum
revised Pension by minimum pre-revised Pension, with the condition that
Pension shall not in any case be less than 65% & family Pension 45%
of the last Pay in Pay Band i.e. Pay in Pay Band+ GP /Pay scale or of
average of last 10 months emoluments (Whichever is more beneficial) as
was worked out & recommended by TECS (Tata Economic Consultancy
Services) consultant to Vth CPC (Para 127.9 Vol III 5th CPC report)
2.One Rank one pension i.e full parity: ‘Justice must be equal for all’.
Otherwise, it breeds contempt, discontentment, inefficiency,
corruption & finally the insurgency. We have seen it happening in
Tribal areas of N.E, Chhatishgarh, Jharkand, Orisa, MP etc.
Vast inequality of income and wealth between lowest & the
highest paid, violation of Article 14 has already induced contempt,
discontent, inefficiency & corruption, in Civil services.
Govt. granted One Rank One Pension (OROP) to Armed forces, Judges
granted it to themselves. Even a period of private practice of lawyer
judges, to be counted towards qualifying service. Higher Bureaucracy got
it through modified parity. All other Central Govt. employees &
Pensioners are definitely not the 2nd grade citizens! One Rank one
Pension to all retirees is now a constitutional requirement to ensure
equality.
3.Defence Pensioners:
As far as defence pensioners are concerned they do the supreme
sacrifice for the country .For them the ratio between highest &
lowest paid must not be more than 1:5 and instead of being thrown out at
an early age they must be transferred to paramilitary/police force
after active tenure in armed forces. Otherwise, if these retired army
personnel trained in all sort of weaponry are left uncared, they may
fall prey to undesirable anti National outfits. In their case it is also
essential that retirees from uniformed cadre & civilian defence
Pensioners are treated at Par for all purpose.
4.Dearness relief :
100% neutralization with automatic merger with Pension whenever it
goes to 50% :The Pension of Central Government Pensioners undergo
revision only once in 10 years during which period the pension structure
gets seriously dis-aligned; 50% increase in price takes place even in
less than 5 years. This results in considerable erosion of the financial
position of the pensioner. DR does not adequately take care of
inflation at this level. Working employees are getting automatic relief
by way of 25% increase in their allowances with every 50% rise in
Dearness Allowance. As pensioners do not get any allowances, they feel
discriminated against. In order to strike a balance, DR may be
automatically merged with Pension whenever it goes to 50% .
5.Additional old age Pension :
5% upward enhancement in pension be granted every five years’
after the age of 60 years & upto 80 years & thereafter as per
existing dispensation. As in the present scenario of climatic
changes, incidence of pesticides and rising pollution, old age
disabilities/diseases set in by the time an employee retires and go on
manifesting very fast, needing additional finances to take care of these
disabilities and diseases, especially as the cost of health care has
gone very high.
6.Pension to be net of Income Tax :
The purchase value of pension gets reduced day by day due to
continuously high inflation and steep rise in cost of food items and
medical facilities. Retired persons/Senior citizens do not enjoy fully
public goods and services provided by Government for citizens due to
lack of mobility and many other factors. Their ability to pay tax gets
reduced from year to year after retirement due to ever-increasing
expenditure on food, medicines and other incidentals. Their net worth at
year end gets reduced considerably as compared to the beginning of the
year. Inflation, for a pensioner is much more than any tax. It erodes
the major part of the already inadequate pension. To enable pensioners,
at the far end of their lives, to live in minimum comfort and to cater
for ever rising cost of living, they may be spared from paying Income
Tax.
7. Restoration of commuted value of Pension in 12 years:
Commutation value in respect of employee superannuating at the age
of 60 years between 1.1.1996 and 31.12.2005 and commuting a portion of
pension within a period of one year would be equal to 9.81 years
Purchase. After adding thereto a further period of two years for
recovery of interest, in terms of observation of Supreme Court in their
judgment in writ petitions No 395-61 of 1983 decided in December 1986,
it would be reasonable to restore commuted portion of pension in 12
years instead of present 15 years. In case of persons superannuating at
the age of 60 years after 31.12.2005 and seeking commutation within a
year, numbers of purchase years have been further reduced to 8.194.
Also, the mortality rate of 60 plus Indians has considerably reduced
ever since Supreme Court judgment in 1986; the life expectancy stands at
76 years now. Therefore, restoration of commuted value of Pension after
12 years is fully justified.
8. The 6th Central Pay Commission’s improved/new benefits,
like full pension for 20 years of service/10yrs service etc have been
limited only to post-1.1.2006 retirees. This is in violation of the
letter and spirit of Hon’ble Apex Court judgment in Nakara Case.
We appeal to the 7th CPC to extend the above benefits to all
pre-1.1.2006 retirees with monetary benefit from 1.1.2006 to do them
equal justice. And that new/improved benefits which 7th CPC may
recommend, too be made equally applicable to present & past
pensioners
9.Medical facilities:
“Health is not a luxury” and “not be the sole possession of a
privileged few”. It is a Fundamental Right of all present & past
Employees!
To ensure hassle free health care facility to Pensioners/family
pensioners, Smart Cards be issued irrespective of departments to all
Pensioners and their Dependents for cashless medical facilities across
the country.
These smart cards should be valid in
- all Govt. hospitals
- all NABH accredited Multi Super Specialty hospitals across the
country which have been allotted land at concessional rate or
given any aid or concession by the Central or the State govt.
- all CGHS, RELHS & ECHS empanelled hospitals across the country.
- Medical attendants. For reimbursement of bills for treatment &
for hospitalization . No referral should be insisted in case of medical
emergencies. For the purpose of reference for hospitalization &
reimbursement of expenditure thereon in other than emergency cases
Doctors/Medical officers working in different Central/State Govt.
department dispensaries/health units should be recognized as Authorized
medical attendant.
The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is
recognized as a fundamental right of all workers in terms of Article 21
read with Article 39(c), 41, 43, 48A and all related Articles as
pronounced by the Supreme Court in Consumer Education and Research Centre & Others vs Union of India (AIR
1995 Supreme Court 922) The Supreme court has held that the right to
health to a worker is an integral facet of meaningful right to life to
have not only a meaningful existence but also robust health and vigour.
Therefore, the right to health, medical aid to protect the health and
vigour of a worker while in service or post retirement is a fundamental
right-to make life of a worker meaningful and purposeful with dignity of
person. Thus health care is not only a welfare measure but is a Fundamental Right.
We suggest that, all the pensioners, irrespective of
pre-retiral class and status, be treated as same category of citizens
and the same homogenous group. There should be no class or category
based discrimination and all must be provided Health care services at
par .
10. Hospital Regulatory Authority:
To ensure that the hospitals do not avoid providing reasonable care
to smart card holders and other poor citizens, a Hospital Regulatory
Authority should be created to bring all NABH-accredited hospitals and
NABL-accredited diagnostic Labs under its constant monitoring of
quality, rates for different procedures & timely bill payments by
Govt. agencies and Insurance companies. CGHS rates may be revised
keeping in mind the workability as per market conditions.
11.Fixed Medical allowance (FMA):
As is recorded in Para 5 of the minutes of Committee of Secretaries
(COS) held on 15.04.2010 (Reference Cabinet Secretariat, Rashtrapati
Bhavan No 502/2/3/2010-C.A.V Doc No. CD (C.A.V) 42/2010 Minutes of COS
meeting dated 15.4.2010) which discussed enhancement of FMA. “CGHS card
estimates for serving Personnel: Since estimates are not available
separately for pensioners M/O Health & Family Welfare had assessed
the total cost per card p.a. in 2007-2008 = Rs 16435 i.e. Rs.1369 per
month for OPD”. Adding to it inflation, the figure today is well over Rs
2000/- PM. Ministry of Labour & Employment, Govt. of India vide its
letter no. G-25012/2/2011-SSI dated 07.06.2013 has already enhanced FMA
to Rs 2000/- PM for EPFO beneficiaries. Thus, to help elderly
pensioners to look after their health, Adequate raise in FMA will
encourage a good number of pensioners to opt out of OPD facility which
will reduce overcrowding in hospitals. OPD through Insurance will cost
much more to the Govt. As such the proposal for raising Fixed Medical
allowance to Pensioners is fully justified and is financially viable.
We suggest that FMA for all C.G. Pensioners be raised to at
least Rs 2000/- PM without any distance restriction linking it to
Dearness Relief for automatic further increase. We further suggest that
FMA be exempted from INCOME TAX.
Fixed Medical Allowance (FMA) is a compensatory allowance to
reimburse the medical expenses. As Medical Reimbursement is not taxable,
FMA should also be exempted from Income Tax.
12.Grievance redressal Mechanism:
Pensioners/Family Pensioners are exploited, harassed and humiliated
by their own counterparts in chair, who at the sight of an old person
adopt a wooden face and indifferent attitude. Pensioners do not have
representation even in Forums & Committees wherein pension policies
and connected matters are discussed. The forum of Pension Adalat too is
not of much avail as it meets only once a year which is too long a
period for an elderly nearer to his end. Moreover, these Adalats deal
with settlement claims only. SCOVA too meets only twice a year for about
3 hours at each occasion. Moreover, the scope of SCOVA is limited to
feedback on Government policies. DOP&PW is perceived as a toothless
authority which lacks direct Service Delivery Capability. It has been
striving over the years to redress the Pensioners’ grievances through
the ‘Sevottam’ model of the Department of Administrative Reforms &
Public grievances; in the absence of strict timeline with punitive
clause it is, however, proving to be a failure. Grievances are either
not resolved for years or closed arbitrarily without resolving
correctly.
We therefore, appeal that for resolving Pensioners complaints ,
(i) A strict time line with punitive clause be introduced in “Sevottam model”
(ii) Grievances are not allowed to be closed without resolving.
(iii) SCOVA be upgraded to JCM level covering all Pensioners by introducing suitable legislative amendment if required.
13. Representations in various committees : As recommended
vide Vth CPC report Vol III para 141.30 Pensioners’ representatives
should be included in various committees & other Fora of Govt where
issues relating to the welfare of pensioners are likely to be discussed
&debated :
Discussing, debating and deciding the matters / Policies relating
to Pensioners, with representatives other than those of pensioners, is
unfair & against the Rules of ‘Natural Justice’. At present various
Committees like National Anomaly Committee (NAC) and JCM (on Pensioner
matters), are there, wherein matters / policies relating to pensioners’
welfare are discussed and decided, but they do not have pensioners’
representatives with the result their viewpoints, hardships &
anomalies are not properly represented. As pensioners are a homogenous
class, there is an urgent need to constitute separate Committees for
pensioners wherein matters / policies / anomalies relating to pensioners
of all Groups, categories &departments may be discussed.
14. Govt. should not indirectly pressurize courts by
appealing again & again to get judgments reversed in its favor
& must implement all court judgments in case of all similarly
placed persons.
V CPC recommended in para 126.5 that any Court Judgment involving
a common policy matter of pay/pension to a group of
employees/pensioners, should be extended automatically to similarly
placed employees/pensioners without driving every affected individual to
the Courts of law. This recommendation is never followed by GOI, with
the result Pensioners in the evening of their life, are forced to
approach the legal forums, seeking the same relief. This in turn,
bulges court dockets. VII CPC to look into this matter once again and to
issue suitable guidelines as deem fit and necessary.
With regards
Truly Yours,
ER.S.C.Maheshwari
Secy.Genl. Bharat Pensioners Samaj
Source: www.scm-bps.blogspot.in
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