DA, ₹7,500 minimum monthly pension, medical facilities: Here's what this pensioner's body is demanding

Pensioners' representative body, the EPS95 National Agitation Committee has called for a nationwide protest this week on 5 August if the government fails to meet demands for ₹7,500 minimum monthly pension and other benefits, according to a PTI report.

As per its press release, the committee is looking for hike in minimum monthly pension under the Employee Pension Scheme (EPS) from the current ₹1,000 to ₹7,500. Administered by the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), the EPS was implemented on 1 September 2014.

EPS95 National Agitation Committee's demands:

As per the statement, key demands are as follows:

• Raising the minimum monthly pension to ₹7,500,
• Providing Dearness Allowance (DA),
• Extending free medical facilities to pensioners and their spouses, and
• Ensuring that eligible retirees receive benefits of higher pension in accordance with Supreme Court judgments.

Making their demands, the committee noted that these are workers “who devoted decades of service to the country's industrial and economic growth” and “deserve a retirement income that ensures financial security and a dignified life”.

“The demand for a ₹7,500 minimum pension is not for special treatment but for a basic standard of social security,” the statement added.

Pension ‘grossly inadequate’ in today's economy

Commander Ashok Raut, national president of the committee told the news agency that close to 81 lakh pensioners under the EPS-95 scheme have been pursuing these demands for over a decade. “Despite repeated assurances from the government, no concrete action has been taken,” he said.

Raut added that retirees are facing financial hardships adding that most of them receive average monthly pension of ₹1,171, an amount the committee believes is “grossly inadequate in today's economic conditions”.

Pensioners' body calls for protests on 5 August

The statement said that thousands of pensioners are covered under EPS-95, adding that they will gather at Jantar Mantar in the national capital of New Delhi on August 5, as part of a nationwide protest demanding their long-pending demands for pension reforms.

The demonstration has been called as “years of representations, peaceful protests, and appeals to the government have failed to bring any meaningful policy decision”, the statement added.

According to the committee, if the government continues to ignore their demands, self-immolation would be their “last resort”.

What has been government response to demands?

Acknowledging the EPS-95 National Agitation Committee's demands in Parliament, Minister of State for Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on 20 July said that although several stakeholders have requested a pension increase, no decision has been made on the matter yet.

“Representations have been received from various stakeholders, including trade unions and public representatives, to increase the minimum pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS), 1995, from the existing ₹1,000 per month,” Karandlaje said.

Asked when the Centre expects to take a final decision on the demand concerning lakhs of elderly pensioners, the minister said the government remains committed to strengthening social security coverage for EPFO members, but any decision will have to take into account the sustainability of the pension fund and future liabilities.

“The Government is committed to ensuring robust social security coverage to members of EPFO schemes while taking into consideration the sustainability of the Fund and the future liabilities thereon,” Karandlaje stated.

(With inputs from PTI)