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Few days back, Mr. Arvind Panagriya, former Vice Chairman of NITI Ayog, now in America, suggested that the new Government should shut down one Central Public Sector Undertaking every week. Yesterday, Mr. Rajiv Kumar, present Vice Chairman of NITI Ayog (new outfit in place of Planning Commission) has suggested that within first 100 days 46 PSUs should be closed! Means three CPSUs should be shut down in a week at average.
The news appeared in THE WIRE is reproduced hereunder:
Delhi: In the first 100 days of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term, a slew of ‘big-bang’ economic reforms that should please foreign investors are likely to be pursued, according to a top official at the government’s main think-tank.
The reforms will include changes in labour laws, privatisation moves and creation of land banks for new industrial development, said Rajiv Kumar, vice chairman of NITI Aayog (National Institute for Transforming India), who reports directly to Modi.
“They (foreign investors) will have reasons to be happy. You will see a slew of reforms I can assure you of that. We are going to pretty much hit the ground running,” Kumar told Reuters in an interview.
COM. G R DHARMA RAJAN BEREAVED
Smt. D Ranganayagi Ammal (75), beloved wife of Com. G R Dharmarajan, Vice President of our Tamilnadu circle expired on 30-5-2019. Funeral has taken place on 31-5-2019.
Com. G R Dharmarajan was our District Secretary at Madurai and nurtured the Madurai SSA Unit as the biggest branch of AIBSNLPWA in the entire country.
We deeply express our sorrow on the demise of Smt. Ranganayagi Ammal and convey our condolences to Com. GRD and other members of the family.…
... P S Ramankutty …
ERNAKULAM SSA UNIT HAS REMITTED Rs 10000
TO THE FANI RELIEF FUND OF OUR ODISHA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION,
ON 29-5-2019.
ARA SSA UNIT OF AIBSNLPWA HAS REMITTED Rs 5000
TO THE FANI RELIEF FUND
OF OUR ODISHA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION.
......
TAMIL NADU CIRCLE ASSOCIATION HAS REMITTED A SUM OF
RUPEES TEN THOUSAND TODAY
TOWARDS THE FANI RELIEF FUND OF OUR ODISHA CIRCLE UNIT.
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The Sixth CPC submitted its report within stipulated time. Justice (Retd) B N Srikrishna and his team in sixth CPC did not bother to study the nature and responsibilities of various cadres in central services and recommend appropriate pay scales. Instead, they adopted a simple method: Add the Basic Pay and DA on 31-12-2005 and then grant a new element of Grade Pay. For Pensioners, the sixth CPC recommend a uniform benefit of 40% of Basic Pension. A serving employee with Basic Pay of Rs 5000 got increase of Rs 4200 as Grade Pay (84% of basic pay) plus consequent increase in HRA etc. For a Pensioner with basic pension of Rs. 5000 the increase was only Rs 2000. That was the brutal injustice done to pensioners by sixth CPC.
For the scale of Rs. 6500-10500, Rs 4200 was originally granted as Gr.Pay. Later on, the Finance Ministry issued an order on 13-11-2009 hiking the said Grade Pay to Rs. 4600. But, in 2017, for the purpose of Pension revision under seventh CPC, when the Department of Pension & Pensioners Welfare prepared Concordance Tables for the said payscale of 6500-10500, Grade pay of Rs. 4200 was only taken into account.
AIBSNLPWA immediately pointed out this and took up the case through Bharat Pensioners Samaj. Karnataka P&T Pensioners Association, a member in SCOVA, also took up the matter. DoP&PW was not willing to change their stand.
Some aggrieved pensioners approached CAT. In all the cases disposed, the CAT directed the government to grant modified benefit with Grade Pay of Rs 4600.
Now, it is reported that Department of Expenditure (Finance Ministry) has issued an order honouring the CAT judgements. DoP&PW has to circulate revised Concordance Tables No 24 and 25. Then only the CCAs can revise pension with effect from 1-1-2016.
WHO WILL GET THE BENEFIT?
All those DoT Pensioners retired from grade IV will get the benefit. Before October 1990, there were only few in grade IV in Telecom (in the pay scales of Rs 2000-3200 & 2000-3500). In 1990, BCR was introduced. 10 percent of Grade III was placed in grade IV. Later from 1-1-1996, they got the pay scale of Rs. 6500-10500. All those people retired from Grade IV before 1-10-2000 will get increase in their pension now. Once the revised Concordance Tables are issued by DoP&PW the concerned pensioners must apply to their CCAs with all available documents.
Note: above is not applicable to those BSNL staff retired after 1-10-2000 since there is no Grade Pay system in BSNL.
Sambalpur District Unit in Odisha has remitted a sum
of Rs. 10,000 to the Odisha Circle's FANI Relief fund.
CHQ OF AIBSNLPWA HAS REMITTED
A SUM OF RUPEES TWENTY THOUSAND (Rs. 20,000)
TO THE RELIEF FUND BEING RAISED BY
OUR ODISHA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION
TO HELP PEOPLE OF ORISSA
....................................................................................
ODISHA RELIEF FUND
CHQ calls upon all members all over the country to donate liberally to the Odisha Relief fund immediately. Branch Secretaries are requested to collect the same and remit the entire amount to the Current Account opened by our Odisha circle branch for the purpose. The details are available in he Special circular given below.
With Regards,
| Com. K B Krishna Rao, General Secretary, Karnataka P&T Pensioners Association,Bengaluru, being a member of the SCOVA, received a communication from Department of Pension & Pensioners Welfare seeking views and suggestions on DIRECT TAXES to assist the Department in taking a pragmatic view for placing the matter before the Department of Revenue for its use during Budget Formulations relating to Direct taxes.In turn, Com. Krishna Rao sought our opinion on the matter. We have submitted the following suggestion: |
Suggestion: Pension being granted to Ex Govt Servants and Family Pension being granted to spouses of Ex Govt Servants should not be taxed.
Reasons:
1.Pension is not salary. Even if it is treated as Salary, it is deferred payment, as observed by the Apex Court. When delayed payment is made as arrears of pay or pension, the whole amount is not accounted for the respective assessment year, based on Form 10E filed by the assessee.
2.Pension of Ex MPs and their spouses is not being taxed on the plea that “it is not salary but income from other sources”. The ‘source’ is nothing but Government Funds. They are paid pension by Government of India from government funds, not by the people who elected them. Family pension is paid to the spouses of deceased MPs and former MPs by Government of India not by the voters. At the same time, sitting MPs, Ex MPs and their spouses are entitled tobenefits at par with central government employees and pensioners in the matter of medical facilities under CGHS etc. While the pension to Ex MPs and family pension to spouses of Ex MPs is not being taxed there is no justification for taxing the pension being granted to Ex Government servants and spouses of Ex Employees who receive pension from the same source of Government funds.
2.Pension is not being taxed in countries like Brazil, Russian federation and Sri Lanka as well as number of states in USA.
Heads of all CPPCs to instruct all their bank branches dealing with the pension payments to record the PPO number in all the passbooks of the pensioners/family pensioners issued by them.
Today on 6-5-19, Mangalore (Karnataka) District Conference was held in the presence of Com. P Gangadhara Rao GS, Radhakrishna AGS and R Changappa CS KTK. Coms H Ramakrishna , K Chandramohan and U Seetharam Bhat have been re elected unanimously as District President, Secretary and Treasurer respectively.
Chennai Telephone District celebrated May day on 1.5.2019 at Anna Nagar Exchange Complex.
Association flag was hoisted by Com. V. Rathna (CHQ-AGS).
Comrades T. S. Vittoban (CHQ-Treasurer), V. Rathna, (AGS), R. Venkatachalam (CS-TN), S. Thangaraj (CS-Chennai) , M.Munuswamy (President-TN) have spoken highlighting the unity and significance of May Day.
* All India Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers-AICPI(IW) for March ,2019 increased by TWO points and pegged at 309.*
District conference of C.G.M. staff (admin.staff) Gujarat Circle held on 11-04-2019 in presence of Com. Hirpara C.S, Com. Varma Circle President & Com.Patel D/t.
Com.H.S.Vaghela, R.S.Nahak, H.M.Makwana are elected unanimously as District president, District Secretary, District treasurer respectively for next tenure
Silchar District Conference (Assam Circle) was held at Silchar, under the Presidentship of Com.Shyamapada Chakraborty and in the presence of Shyamalendu Bhattacharjee ( Circle Secretary,Assam) on 27th of April, 19.
About 150 delegates/observers attended the conference. Com.Shyamapada Chakraborty, Com. Manoranjan Das ,Com.Sudip Das have been elected unanimously as Dist.President, Dist.Secretary and Dist.Treasurer.
Hither to, in Haryana State, our Association is having District Branches in 8 SSAs out of total 9. With consistent efforts of Com J S Dahiya AGS CHQ and others, on 21-4-19 in HISSAR , the 9th District Branch of AIBSNLPWA has been formed. In the General Body meeting of more than 30 Members, Coms. Rajkumar, N L Tanwar and Amar Singh have been unanimously elected as District President, Secretary and Treasurer respectively in the presence of Com J S Dahiya AGS.
P Gangadhara Rao GS
In the General Body meeting held on 30-6-18, under the Presidentship of Com Ram Ji Dubey and in the presence of Com. J S Dahiya AGS CHQ , a New Circle of UTTARAKHAND has been formed as 23rd Circle Unit of our AIBSNLPWA. Com Ram Ji Dubey, Gopal Dadar, Dhan Singh Gosain have been unanimously elected as Circle President, Circle Secretary and Circle Treasurer respectively.
P Gangadhara Rao GS
On 22-11-18 itself Com. D Gopalakrishnan and myself gave this letter to Member (F) and discussed with her. Since no action has been taken till now , as a reminder we gave a copy of that letter but with dt.. 4-4-19.
P Gangadhara Rao GS