One Rank One Pension – We deserve it too! – Central Government Employees

The Joint Consultative Machinery for all Central Government staff has demanded that one rank one pension be implemented for all current and future pensioners. They have also demanded that the same may be implemented  in the Seventh Pay Commission.

We already know that the 7th Pay Commission is due shortly. We also know that the One Rank One Pension demand by our veterans have been granted by the Government a few days back. One Rank One Pension (OROP) already exists for the judges of the Supreme Court, High Court and CAG, is a known fact.

Experts are of the view that the Government cannot adopt a step motherly treatment, giving benefits to one set of people and setting aside the others. The Government has different departments and Offices to serve the Country and the people as a whole. The Government cannot differentiate the departments or offices based on any given theory, because at the end of the day, every department, every office, has its own role to play in the the development of the Country and the welfare of the people. Hence the Central Government employees are of the opinion that, the One Rank One Pension scheme should be universal, and not limited to a few Offices alone.

In the given scenario, the joint consultative machinery for all Central Government staff has demanded that one rank one pension be implemented for all current and future pensioners. They have also demanded that the same may be implemented  in the Seventh Pay Commission. A letter has been written to the Seventh Pay Commission Chairman Justice Ashok Kumar Mathur in this regard.

Given below is the extract of the memorandum submitted by JCM to the 7th Pay Commission :

CHAPTER – IV

• Parity Between Past And Future Pensioners 4.1 The Government have recently announced that “One Rank One Pension” shall be implemented in respect of Armed Forces so that the glaring disparity between the persons of equivalent rank and status do not draw vastly unequal pensions if they retire at different point of time, is undone. Already there is a complete parity in pension among the Judges of Supreme Court, High Court and the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, irrespective of the date of their retirement.
• 4.2 In so far as the Civilian Employees are concerned the principle of parity in pension between the past and the future pensioners was implemented by the Government as had been recommended by the V CPC. The V CPC recommended that “as a follow up of our basic objective of parity we would recommend that the pension of all pre-1986 retirees may be updated by notional fixation of pay as on 1.1.1986 by adopting the same formula (Revised Pay Rules) as far as the serving employees. This step would bring all the past pensioners to a common platform on to the 4th CPC pay scales as on 1.1.1986. Thereafter, all pensioners who have been brought on the 4th CPC pay scales by notional fixation of pay and those who have retired on or after 1.1.1986 can be treated alike in regard to consolidation of their pension as on 1.1.1996 by allowing the same fitment weightage as may be allowed to the serving employees”. They further recommended that “the consolidated pension shall not be less than 50% of the minimum pay of the post as revised by the CPC held by the pensioner at the time of retirement”. The V CPC further said that “this attainment of reasonable parity needs to be continued so as to achieve complete parity over a period of time”. However the VI CPC totally ignored these recommendations of the V CPC and has reintroduced the element of disparity by not adopting the same formula for post 1996 retirees, and by not recommending the same fitment benefit and other recommendations liberalising the pension rules in respect of pre-2006 retirees. Thus a huge disparity between pre-2006 and post-2006 retirees has been created by the VI CPC.
• 4.3 We therefore urge that pay of every pre-2014 retiree should be notionally redetermined (corresponding to the post from which he or she retired and not corresponding to the scale from which he or she retired) as if he or she is not retired and then the pension be computed under the revised liberalised rules which are to be applicable to the post-2014 retirees under the same rules which would be applicable to employees in service as on 1.1.2014.

Source: Memorandum of National Council Staff Side JCM submitted to 7th Pay Commission

Source: The Hindu Businessline