Siddaramaiah may discuss Old Pension Scheme in Cabinet meet: CMO

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah may discuss the implementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) in the next Cabinet meeting, his office quoted him as saying on Tuesday (June 13).

The decision may be announced in the state Budget.

According to the statement issued by his office, Siddaramaiah hinted at the move while interacting with a delegation of the office-bearers of NPS employees’ union, who urged him to cancel the New Pension Scheme (NPS).

Former MLC VS Ugrappa, who spoke on the occasion, said 2.98 lakh employees are covered under NPS. The pension amount is deposited in National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL). This amount can be deposited in General Provident Fund (GPF) and made available at the time of retirement, the statement said.

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Ugrappa explained that the government should decide to drop the disciplinary action taken against those who took part in the Vote for OPS campaign.

“NPS has been cancelled in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. It should also be cancelled in Karnataka, and OPS implemented. By cancelling NPS, Rs 19,000 crore will be available under the scheme, which can be used for development programmes of the government,” Karnataka State NPS employees’ union president Shantaram Teja was quoted as saying.

“Rs 9,000 crore of the employees’ share can be converted to GPF and Rs 10,000 crore of the government’s share can be used for development programmes,” he added.

(With agency inputs)