Congress Promises Salaries, Pensions On 1st Of Every Month

Nalgonda MP and Congress candidate from the Huzurnagar constituency Captain N Uttam Kumar Reddy today promised that the "next Congress government" in Telangana would ensure payment of salaries and pensions to the government employees on the 1st of every month.

He also said that all the issues related to the Interim Relief and the PRC of the government employees would be taken up on a priority basis.

Reddy had a meeting with the current and retired government employees' representatives to discuss the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), health cards, delayed salaries and other related issues. Speaking on the occasion, he accused the BRS government of neglecting the welfare of the government employees and pensioners in Telangana.

Reddy said that many government employees, barring those in Hyderabad and its suburbs, were experiencing delayed salaries, which was adversely affecting their financial stability and CIBIL scores. This was especially concerning for the police, teaching and medical staff, he said.

He also condemned the delay in the constitution of the second Pay Revision Commission (PRC), and said that the announcement of a 5% interim relief was insufficient.

Reddy also claimed that the Employees Health Scheme (EHS) was not working properly, and that the employees and pensioners were not getting the full reimbursement of hospital bills. He said that the next Congress Government would ensure proper reimbursement of all hospital bills.

He also strongly advocated the abolition of the CPS and the reimplementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) which assured employees 50% of their last drawn salary as pension. He highlighted that the OPS had been successfully reinstated in Congress-ruled states such as Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh and Jharkhand.

He also criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao for ignoring the demands for the restoration of the OPS, and reiterated the Congress' commitment to reinstating it in Telangana if voted to power in the upcoming Assembly elections.

Reddy also addressed the "grave" employment situation in Telangana, where the unemployment rate was 15.1%. He said that over 22 lakh hopefuls had registered with the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) for job exams and yet remained unemployed. The government's inability to implement the unemployment allowance of Rs 3,016 per month, promised before the 2018 Assembly elections, amounted to a debt of Rs 1,71,912 to every jobless youth, he said.

He also claimed that the BRS government had neglected to report 1.91 lakh vacancies in government departments, as mentioned by the Biswal Committee. He said that the State government had failed to fill 24,000 teacher positions and an additional 12,000 in the higher education sector, leading to a staggering 64.9% vacancy rate in higher education.

He also highlighted the plight of around 3,000 ASHA workers and over 54,000 mid-day meal workers, who were fighting for regularization, adequate wages, and benefits like provident funds and insurance. The Telangana Vaidya Vidhana Parishad employees had also joined the chorus for equal treatment as government employees, he said. He pointed out the BRS government's broken promise to regularize all contracts and outsourcing staff.