Ajit Pawar promises return to Old Pension Scheme before polls

The Maharashtra government intends to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) before the state elections in 2024, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, who also holds the finance portfolio, has told the Legislative Council of the assembly.

The statement comes amid state government officials calling for yet another protest to demand implementation of OPS.

Pawar, during the Winter Session, said: “The state government is very positive about the Old Pension Scheme. Post Lok Sabha elections, we have six months for the state assembly election. Before that, we will take a decision on the scheme.”

In a post on microblogging website X, the deputy CM said: “The State Govt had formed a 3 member committee to study this issue. This committee consists of senior bureaucrats like Subodh Kumar, KP Bakshi & Sudhir Shrivastav who had submitted their report to the state Govt. Also, we are getting more information from other states who have already implemented the Old Pension Scheme.”

A huge gathering was held at Yashvant stadium in Nagpur city on Tuesday at the behest of teachers and non-teaching staff on state government payroll and state government employee unions to demand the old scheme.

Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray, who was in Nagpur for the past two days, also visited Yashwant stadium and extended his support to the protesters. Interacting with the gathering, he said: “If I were the chief minister, this situation would have never arrived.”

The RBI, in its report released on December 11, cautioned against the return to the Old Pension Scheme by certain states, stating it would pose a substantial financial burden and impede their ability to undertake growth-oriented capital expenditures.

States like Rajasthan, Punjab and Chhattisgarh have already reinstated the scheme and now there are some reports which suggest that Karnataka is also planning to bring it back.

With inputs from News18