Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: Congress on Sunday targeted the union government over its announcement of the Unified Pension Scheme saying 'U' in UPS stands for "U-turns", even as Left-backed CITU and AITUC calling it "nothing but an extension of the existing" New Pension Scheme (NPS) and vowed to fight for restoration of the old scheme.
A day after the union government approved the UPS, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge listed the "U-turns" of the Modi government, which included "rollback" of Long Term Capital Gain/indexation, Broadcasting Regulation Bill and lateral entry as well as "sending" Waqf (Amendment) Bill to Joint Committee of Parliament.
"The ‘U’ in UPS stands for the Modi government's U-turns! Post June 4, the power of the people has prevailed over the arrogance of power of the Prime Minister...We will keep ensuring accountability and protect 140 crore Indians from this despotic government!" Kharge posted on 'X'.
CPI(M)-backed Centre of India Trade Unions (CITU) said it “denounces” the UPS while urging the Union government to restore the “non-contributory defined assured” OPS.
In a statement, CPI-backed All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) General Secretary Amarjeet Kaur said the employees are by and large not happy because the UPS is "nothing but an extension of the existing NPS".
Insisting that they will continue to fight to restore OPS, she said one of the "worst decisions" is the increase of the full pension period from 10 years in the OPS to 25 years under UPS. The employees will have to continue to 10 per cent of their wages in UPS also unlike in the OPS, she said.
The protections provided in the old scheme like the 40 per cent commutation of pension in advance, restoration of the commuted portion of pension after 15 years, additional pension after 80 years and revision of pension based on Pay Commission report are "not there" in the UPS, she said.
"The market gambling in the UPS will continue to remain. Already more than Rs six lakh crore is accumulated with the NPS Fund. The Modi government wanted to retain this amount in the market," she said.
If the Modi government is really concerned about the old age protection of the government employees, she said it should have increased its contribution to 28.5 per cent.
"In a nutshell UPS is not going to match the OPS which is basically non-Contributory in nature. Already, resentment has started amongst the central and state government employees against the Modi government's decision to introduce the contributory UPS," she said, promising to support employees' agitation for restoration of OPS.
"Changing of name of places and schemes is the character of the present government without any benefit to the people or the nation, which is reflected once again when the Cabinet took a decision to retain the NPS in its present shape and to introduce one more contributory Pension Scheme," she added.