Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Chief Secretary Parbodh Saxena on Tuesday issued a office memorandum to finance department of Himachal Pradesh to notify Old Pension Scheme (OPS)or form Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to implement council of ministers meeting.
Chief secretary hold a detailed deliberation on the OPS. with state finance department and stated that all Government employees who are presently being covered under the defined Contributory Pension Scheme also referred to as National Pension System ( NPS ) will be given benefit of Old Pension Scheme (OPS). In a Office memo also released late evening said that finance Department is directed to notify instructions and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to implement the decision.
OM also stated that in pursuance to Cabinet decision above, the Finance Department would issue as and conditions and standing operating procedure in due course course of time. Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu who hold first COM meeting on January 13 announced that it has decided to implement the OPS as per the ruling party Election menifesto or Vision Document. He said that Goverment has created additional resources for providing the OPS as VAT on Diesel was hiked to Rs three per litre however Goverment has ensured to keep the prices of diesel Rs three less than other border state
Chief minister stated that state exchequer is almost empty and after debacle in three Assembly and a Lok Sabha Election last BJP government has decided to slashed state VAT on Diesel by Rs six per litre which was hiked to fifty percent by new Goverment. State government which was being criticized by former planning Commission Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and RBI for pushed the state in financial bankruptcy and keeping state finance under cash strain justified the decision stating that state and employees contribution Rs 800 Crore NOS was pending with PRDA but central government did not released this amount to state. He said that Government would lanch new schemes after making resources management for such decisions.
He said that previous government was in whooping borrowing and it lanched about 900 scheme and open Institutions putting the state exchequer under Rs 74000 Cr debt. Chief minister who also hold the portfolio of finance said that BJP government announced to implement 6 th pay commission to state Employees but it did not released Rs 14000 Cr. He said that Rs 1000 Crore arrears of Employees was unpaid on account of interim relief arrears (IRA) and DA installment. The Congress government also denotifed about 950 government Institutions opened by previous BJP government in the Election years.
Chief minister said that Rs 5000 Cr and new creations of posts would be required for the making fully functional such Institutions. He said that the BJP government bleed the state coffers and net financial liabilities and debt tune to Rs 91000 Crore handed over to him with empty state coffer. Congress chief minister said that state did not got any additional financial assistance from centre despite rehotric double engine. CAG report for the financial year 2021-22 also found in the state financial audit that previous government spend Rs 623 Cr without budget provisions. Both the government had been amended the FRBM act to increase the caping of borrowing limit three time in last three years. Previous government blame Covid pandemic and declining revenue collections however present government was justifing to enhance borrowing limit blaming state empty state coffers.
