• The Central Government has already made its stand clear on OPS and Union Minister Bhagwat Karad has said that no such proposal is under consideration
Amid the debate over the revival of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), the Madhya Pradesh government on Tuesday clarified in the Legislative Assembly that no proposal is under consideration to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for its employees.
The government's written reply came after Congress MLAs Ravindra Singh Tomar, Suresh Raje and BJP MLA Dinesh Rai Munmun asked questions.
Responding to questions, Finance Minister Jagdish Deora said, "There is no proposal to implement OPS."
The minister clarified that the employees appointed after January 1, 2005 are registered under the New Pension Scheme (NPS) and the number of such employees in Madhya Pradesh is 4,83,332.
Former chief minister and Congress president Kamal Nath had earlier this week promised that he would restore the OPS if voted back to power in the November 2023 assembly elections. The Congress government in Madhya Pradesh will be restored as soon as it is formed.
The state is witnessing protests from employees who have joined under the banner of the MP chapter of the National Movement for Old Pension Scheme and are demanding reinstatement of OPS claiming that the benefits under NPS are not adequate.
The Central Government has already cleared its stand on OPS with Union Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad on 12th December stating that no proposal regarding restoration of OPS is under consideration of the Government.
Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand have asked the central government and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) to refund the amount deposited by subscribers under NPS to the respective states.
On 18 November the Punjab government also announced its decision to restore the scheme but the central government has not yet received any request from Punjab.
"The State Governments of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand have sent proposals to the Central Government/PFRDA to refund the accumulated amount of subscribers under NPS to the respective State Governments. No such proposal has been received from the State Government of Punjab." the minister said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.
The old pension scheme is slowly becoming a sensitive election issue in many states, with the Congress party promising to restore the scheme in every election. Many political pundits attribute the recent victory of the Congress party in Himachal Pradesh to the same promise of restoration of OPS.
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