Chandigarh, Oct 21 (IANS) In a major decision, the Punjab Cabinet led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday approved restoration of the old pension scheme for the government employees.
A spokesperson for the Chief Minister's Office said a decision to this effect was taken in meeting of Cabinet, with Mann in the chair, here.
The spokesperson said the employees will be given option for adopting the old pension scheme or the new pension scheme. The old pension scheme was discontinued in 2004 and ever since then the employees are being given the new pension scheme.
However, the employees have been since long demanding the restoration of the old pension scheme.
Keeping in view the well-being of the lakhs of employees, the Cabinet has decided to restore the old pension scheme, a major relief to the employees.
Realising that the employees are the backbone of the government, the state has taken this historic decision which is likely to benefit all category of the employees, the spokesperson said.
Also, the Cabinet decided to give six per cent dearness allowance (DA) to government employees and pensioners with effect from October 1.
The Council of Ministers opined that the employees were a critical segment of the state administration and safeguarding their interests was the government's top priority, the spokesperson said.
Rajendra Shetty a.k.a Bannanje Raja is involved in 44 serious criminal offences including murder, extortion and kidnapping. Authorities had issued an Interpol red corner notice against Bannanje Raja, and he was nabbed in Casablanca in Morocco. Later, he was extradited to Karnataka from there.
The case pertains to a blast that occurred in District Court Complex, Ludhiana on December 23, 2021 in which one person died and six persons were injured. Initially, a case was lodged by Lidhiana Police in 2021 and later the probe was taken over by the NIA in 2022.
The protest, which was led by BJP Yuva Morcha's national secretary Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga and its national president Tejasvi Surya, started around 10.30 a.m. from the IP College to the Chief Minister's residence.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on March 27 had announced that Central Civil Service Rules will be implemented for all employees under Chandigarh Administration. This decision has evoked sharp criticism from Punjab leaders who, cutting across party lines, termed it "an encroachment on Punjab's rights".
At a meeting with the Punjab Revenue Officers Association here, the minister assured representatives of the association that all their demands will be considered sympathetically, while asking them to immediately join their offices in larger public interest.
