E circular No. DK 66 dated 30th June 2021

 

E circular No.DK/66                                        30-06-2021

Dear Friends,

Reg:  Family Pension Improvement - Letter to Chairman LIC.

It has been a while since I came on the touch-board of messages to all of you. Many of you would have known the unconfirmed report that the Finance Minister has cleared the proposal for raising the level of Family Pension for Bank Retirees to 30% (without Ceiling) of last drawn Basic plus applicable DA, from its current level of 15%. In the normal course, as per prevailing practice, what is granted to the Bank Employees is almost automatically followed up with a similar approval for LIC Employees/Pensioners. Though there is no clear official confirmation regarding the Approval from the FM on this matter, we believe it has happened, and soon the IBA should be releasing instructions to Banks on how the change pans out. I thought, we need to take it up with our Chairman now, so that efforts from the side of LIC, is not missed out by default on this very important issue for pensioners of LIC. Accordingly, we have sent out a letter to the Chairman LIC, requesting him to follow up with the Govt. on behalf of Pensioners of LIC. The Letter to Chairman, sent just this morning, is reproduced here for your information.

FEDERATION OF RETIRED LIC CLASS I OFFICERS' ASSOCIATIONS

30-06-2021    

THE CHAIRMAN                                                                      

LIC OF INDIA, YOGAKSHEMA,

JEEVAN BIMA MARG,                                                              

MUMBAI – 400021.

 

Dear Sri Kumar,

          My hearty Greetings to you upfront.  I have in the past addressed a number of communications to you on matters of utmost importance to Pensioners of LIC. We understand that the Finance Minister has given approval for Family Pension improvement to 30% (without ceiling), to the Bank Pensioners. Normally what gets approved for Bank Employees/Pensioners is also followed up with similar approval for LIC Employees/Pensioners. That has been the practice thus far.

          Can we then reasonably expect that in this case too (Family Pension), the clearance will follow for LIC Pensioners? I would request you to get in touch with the Govt. Dept. and make sure, this old practice is kept up here too. I understand that in 2019 itself, you had made it part of a Board Resolution, and the same lies with the Govt. I think it would be most appropriate for the matter to be pursued with the Govt., since the Family Pension improvement for Bank Pensioners has reportedly been approved. As you had yourself indicated in our CO meeting once, the Family Pension matter really merits an upward change.

There is yet another matter too, on which a recommendation from the LIC has been put up to the Govt. more than a year ago. That relates to the additional pension (in stages) to the age 80 plus category, as in central Govt. This again brooks no further delay, as many in that senior category are passing into the ages, without any such additional support. I would request you to take it up with the Govt. once again to make it functional at the earliest.

The above referred two items stand separate from the main matter of Revision in Pension, which again we understand, is receiving the serious attention of the Govt. As we have mentioned, any number of times earlier, this Demand of up-gradation of Pension is not just a copy on the Govt. pattern, but the very fair and just principle it embodies, that of a reasonable parity with market conditions, which currently, are running away from the pensioners, leaving them in a situation of economic distress. I do hope you will kindly take up this matter too with the Governmental Authorities who, as we understand, are already considering it seriously, for both the Banks as well as the LIC.

This is not just another formal request, but one which looks at the timing of the need to take it up with the Govt., when indications of the Govt. looking into these issues are on right now.

With Regards        D.Krishnan.

 

As for the unofficial information that has been doing the rounds, on a high powered Committee having been entrusted with studying and recommending to the Govt., on up-gradation of Pension for Banks and the LIC, there has been no further inputs, to report any developments, on this front. Covid-19 seems to have taken centre- stage, and other items on the Table, seem to have taken a back-seat, for now. We do believe that this very fair and just matter will eventually find sanction from the Govt. circles. My own personal take is that the Court Case on this should be the last resort, as Courts can be easily misled, as it happened in the High Court of Delhi in 2017, and with all facts and justice on our side, we still lost the Case on up-gradation. And if that were to happen again in the SC, our fate on this matter, with so much of substance and fairness, would seem to be sealed. That is why I am keen that the Govt. should come out with the changes in Rules required, to put things where they should belong.

        In the case of the Govt. employees, the Pay Commissions appointed, with very highly empowered Members, could concentrate on the entire perspectives for the pensioners, while dealing with Revision in emoluments for those in service. They could clearly draw out the  logic for those retired, as much as for those in service, as market conditions were similar for both. If Pension is  ‘deferred wage’ as held in a number of Supreme Court averments, the current wage Revision for employees in service, should also be followed with a similar Revision for those receiving the deferred wage. They could bring up the concept of ‘Modified Parity’ for pensioners when changes were made for those in service. The kind of reasoning made out in the 7^th Pay Commission Report on this subject is worth going through, for its very fair and authentic plea on behalf of the Pensioners.

Sri C H Mahadevan of Hyderabad Assn., a committed crusader in the cause of up-gradation of Pension, in one of his recent writings has made out, how by not giving parallel raise for pensioners, along with the 5 yearly Revisions for Employees, it has resulted in an unfair additional surplus for the Govt., and added returns to Policyholders, all these years, at the cost of the Pensioners. If the additional cost had been incurred through the Revision packages, distributed over the years, including reasonable raises to Pensioners too, in each of the 5 yearly Revision exercises, the current scenario of showing bloated (cumulative) additional cost, as an argument against pension up-gradation being given now, would not have arisen.

With Greetings to all--

D.Krishnan

General Secretary