Individual protest letters to Chairman, Collection Drive & Letter to EDs(P)

FEDERATION OF RETIRED LIC CLASS I OFFICERS' ASSOCIATIONS     

President :    N.P. Bali 705, Sur, Veena Saaz, Thakur Complex, Kandivali (East), Mumbai - 400 101 Mob : 9820324213 Email Id - npbali@hotmail.com

General Secretary :    D Krishnan No.6/1, Sreshta Riverside Apartments, Wood Creek Road, Nandambakkam, Chennai - 600089 Tel : 9176635967 / 044 42850049. Email Id - dkrishnan1@gmail.com

E circular DK/46                                                                                                                   29-10-2018

Friends,

Reg: Individual protest letters to Chairman, Collection Drive & Letter to EDs(P)

There's been a bit of a gap in time since I communicated last. The important matters, for the Federation, going now, relate to

(1) The Individual Letters of Protest to LIC Chairman on the deficiencies in the Arrears Payment  and (2)           The Collections of money by the Associations on the basis of Call given after the Arrears Payment was announced.

The Individual letter-campaign has been well responded so far, with a number  of Associations reporting good numbers of such letters sent to Chairman already. The Copies of these letters in bundles are also being sent to us, though the process is by no means complete. This campaign is part of a Federation Strategy to tell the Supreme Court that people from all over are protesting against the deficiencies in the Arrears Payment by the Corporation. So this needs to be done with the utmost sense of earnestness by the Association leaderships, where the campaign is still on the slower side. The copies are to be sent to us in bundles to enable us to make out the total numbers, and then report it appropriately to the SC.

Collections of Funds from members in two different groups, one that received the Arrears, and the other that did not receive the benefit of Arrears (Post 1997 group of Retirees), has to be taken by our Associations with a lot of seriousness, as these form the life-blood of the Federation's Resources to exist and take up causes that cry out for fairness. Though most associations have made chunk transfers into the Federation Account, these form only part of the collections made, or a good part needs to be still collected. So I request all the Associations to further speed up their Collection-Drive to cover all members or , if a good bit of the Collections have been held back, to transfer them to the Federation Account without delay.

Recently the Kolkata Association, had written to me about their committee having met and passed a Resolution that some other important matters concerning the Pensioners should also be taken up with the Central Office. Accordingly, a letter to the Executive Directors (P) was sent on the 27th of October. That  letter is reproduced here:

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The Executive Director (Personnel)                                                       27-10-2018

 LIC OF India 

Mumbai 400021                                                                                     

Dear Sirs,

                      Reg: Pensioners' Issues ....

While our attention in recent days has been on the case, in the Supreme Court, and the fall-outs  from it, we have been looking at some other important matters as well, where changes, possibly can be decided/initiated by you, at the CO itself.

1. We the aged pensioners have been experiencing difficulties whenever the Pension Payment date gets shifted to days other than the 1st of the month. It (1st of the month) may be a Sunday, or N I Act Holiday, or Accounts Closing at Bank, either Qly, Hly or Yly, and in all these eventualities the pension is not paid on the first of the month but on subsequent days. In some cases of Bank A/C closing, the delay has been of the order of 3 days' duration, causing the pensioners a lot of hardship for  defraying our monthly pay-outs, right from credit card due dates, to making payments to our other supply- chain on the domestic front.

Ideally, you may consider payment of pension to follow the schedule of salary disbursement to in-service employees, during next amendment of Pension Rules.  Meanwhile we have a suggestion here, which does not involve violating the current Rule of payment to pensioners, on the 1st of the month. Your payment to our Bank Accounts should be made in such a way that, we are enabled to draw the pension money on the 1st of the month, whether it's a Sunday or a Holiday or anything else.

 The system is able to adjust itself very effectively, in respect of the in-service employees, so that they unfailingly draw salary, on the last but one full working day of the month, In their case LIC never pushes the salary date to beyond the intervening holiday.

Our needs are equally, if not more deserving of some clear arrangement, where irrespective of whether it is a Holiday or not, we must access our Pension Money on the 1st of the month, for sure. . In other words, make the adjustment in the payment system in such a way, that pensioners are enabled to draw their Pension money on time. 

 Kindly look at the spirit of the rule too, apart from just the letter of it, then, you will find the way out, and yet, you will not be found violating the rule, of paying us only on the 1st of the month.

2. Currently, those retiring on the 1st of the month, are tagged on to the previous month-end, for purposes of Retirement & Fixation of Pension, instead of, to the end of the month, of their actual month of birth & retirement. This is a small re-adjustment which is fair to the retiree, when compared to others, retiring on dates other than the 1st of the month. In all fairness, to those retiring on the 1st of the month, this small re-alignment should be considered.   

3. Our Dearness Relief amount is currently reviewed once in 6 months. We would request that this Review is done quarterly, as is done for in-service Employees. As it is, this is the group of senior citizens, who are affected most by cost escalations, even though, theoretically, a small element of it, is taken care of, by the Dearness Relief being factored in. It will be in the fitness of things if the DR review is done Quarterly, rather than Hly, as it now obtains, to give the pensioners the much needed relief.

4. We would earnestly request that the scheme of Medical Reimbursement now in vogue, for most of us, is thrown open, once again, to those who did not opt for it, for some reason, at that time. The Benefits of higher financial limits, and some other features, which have undergone positive changes over time, could be very beneficial to those retirees too , if they are offered another option to join in. We would request that this  be given due consideration and taken up with the insurance company at the time of next renewal

5.  While there is the Medical Benefit Scheme, for Hospitalisation, what we , the elders in age, are missing out on, is the facility of Health check-up, say, once a year, which can effectively help in preventing major diseases/ailments, by getting forewarned of possible health conditions, in advance, through such Check-ups. The Medical- scheme- Claim- experience, on the Hospitalisation provision, may also show a positive change for the better, on account of this preventive care, through such Health Check-ups. Can this welfare measure be thought of for pensioners?

6.  We had been, over the last few years, discussing at your levels in the CO, the fairness, and need for extending the point, granted by the Supreme Court, in the M C Jain case, that of allowing those who retired between Aug 1992 and March 1993, to have their Pension Fixation done, on the basis of the Revision from  1-8-1992.  You will know that the Revision of Emoluments made then, was allowed for all other classes of employees from that date itself, except the Class I, for whom the effective date was fixed as 1-4-1993. It was this discrimination to Class I alone,  that was challenged in the M C Jain case, which was upheld by the Supreme Court.

In all discussions on this matter, with the CO leaderships, earlier, there never was a counter- view expressed,  against this logic, which is indeed very sound.

Not only that the oral assurances on this, have not been carried out, the CO is also consciously fighting the fresh  writ petitions, on this matter, against yielding to this principle , to just a hand-full of surviving octogenarians. Can the CO not take a decision to carry out this very legitimate request, of a generation, that is fast fading out?

 Can we not be graceful in such matters concerning the past employees, at their ripe old age? We can assure you, that cases now pending in the Courts on this matter, can be withdrawn, if the CO can take this decision. Kindly do have a re-look at  this matter  with compassion, rather than, the routine official approach, of defending against any matter raised.

7.  The matter regarding, offering one more chance,  to opt for the Pension scheme of LIC, for those who are not in it now, would indeed be a good gesture on the part of the Corporation. Our LIC Chairman of the past, Sri S K Roy had addressed a letter, to the Joint Secretary Finance, in his time, which carries all the right reasons why it should be done. In point of fact, in the year 2010, such an offer was made to the employees of the Banking industry.  We earnestly suggest that such an offer be made to the employees of LIC too.

8. Here is yet another matter which calls for your compassionate consideration: The minimum qualifying length of service of 33 years for eligibility for full Pension has been changed for central Govt. employees on the basis of Recommendations of the 6th Central Pay Commission to just 20 years of completed service. This improvement in perspective adopted by the Central Govt. for the retired employees, should be a guide for the LIC too, whose very Rules on Pensions was drawn on the basis of the then Central Govt. Rules.

 As it is, there is a ready Rule 56, in our Pension Rules, which points to the spirit, in which matters concerning our pensioners, is to be viewed. This again calls for a progressive and sympathetic outlook, on the part of the CO, to initiate the corresponding change, for improving the lot of our pensioners. Kindly, do look at it with all the sense of  consideration at your command.

Sometime, in the near future, we would also like to go over and discuss these matters with you. But then, they are all such fair and square demands, that you may not need to wait, for a face-to-face discussion, to grant them. Kindly do let us have a response from you, to this communication, carrying important matters for the Pensioners, whose time keeps ticking away .  Thanking You,

D.Krishnan

27-10-2018

CHENNAI.

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That's it for now. With Greetings and Best Wishes to all

D.Krishnan

General Secretary