bankpensioner LETTER TO TIMES OF INDIA BY C N VENUGOPAL

Subject: bankpensioner LETTER TO TIMES OF INDIA BY C N VENUGOPAL.

FOR INFORMATION:

Copy of a letter addressed to Times Of India, by Mr C N Venugopal is furnished here under for information :

Views expressed by him on  Banks Pension Fund is not factual. There will not be any surplus in pension fund.

"C N VENUGOPALAN EX-MANAGER UNION BANK ON INDIA & FORMER DIRECTOR (GOI NOMINEE) STATE BANK OF TRAVANCORE - "Nandanam", Kesari Junction, N Paravur, Kerala – 683513 e-mail:ceeyenvee@gmail.com Mob:9447747994 No.TOI:210828 

28th August, 2021 

Editor, Times of India, Mumbai 

Sir, 

Sub: Times of India report dated 26th August, 2021 

"Government gives hefty pension boost to bank employees" Facts and Fiction. 

This has reference to the captioned article which is prejudicial to the interest of nearly eight lakhs of employees and retired employees of Public Sector Banks in India. 

It does mislead the entire public of India and the judiciary too, creating a wrong impression that the tax money is shed on the bank employees by enhancing their pension. Citing Debasish Panda, Secretary, Financial Services, it was reported that Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman was concerned on the slabs of pension of 15, 20 and 30 percent of pension and wanted to revised it so that the family members of bank employees get a decent amount to survive and sustain creating a false impression that a bounty was given to the bank employees. 

The statement is paradoxical since pension scheme in banks is exactly on the premise of Central Civil Pension in terms of the statutory pension regulations of banks; but family pension is 40 percent to central Civil Pensioners and bankers are granted 30 percent only with the present hike. Times of India further reported that the employer contribution to the New Pension Scheme (NPS) was hiked to 14 percent from the present 10 percent by way of a second boost to bank employees. It is pertinent that the mandatory contribution to NPS was increased to 14 percent in the case of Central Government employees from April 1, 2019 {source: Business Line report of 26.08.2010} and the hike approved for bank employees is resultant on it and not a bonanza to the bank employees.

 The reporting that employees who had been with banks before 2004 are eligible to a defined benefit pension is basically wrong as they are under the statutory Pension Regulations of Banks. On the basis of a Joint Note/ Settlement between Indian Banks' Association (IBA) and the unions/associations in the banking industry, employees who joined service after 31st March, 2010 were excluded from the Pension Scheme by placing them under NPS when the power vested with banks vide section 19.1 and 19.4 of Banking Companies Acquisition 2 and Transfer of Undertakings Act, 1970 prohibit any amendment to Pension Regulations which is inconsistent with the Pension Scheme. 

Fact remains that the NPS is operated by the government and the differential contribution of 4 percent in the case of employees under NPS {which is the deferred wages of employees} will reach the government along with identical contribution by the employee in lieu of keeping both amounts in the Pension Funds with the banks. It amounts to taping of the money of the bank employees into the kitty of the government under a pretext of paying pension out of it later. The exclusion of employees who joined service after 31st March, 2010 was apparent breach of the Pension Regulations and the Ministry of Finance amended the Pension Regulations {inconsistent with the Pension Scheme} in the year 2017 for giving legs to the illegal acts they did through banks. But the amendment was catching makers of the amendments by unveiling that there were excluding employees {who joined service after 31.03.2010} from Pension Scheme in 2010 sans enabling provisions in the Regulations. Going by the Pension Regulations in force, such employees are within the Pension Scheme of Banks, though their mandatory contributions to Pension Fund is siphoned to the NPS by the government using the Bank Boards as its henchmen. 

Times has highlighted in the box to the report that the additional burden {on account t of hike in family pension} will be borne by banks. This is a fake report to the extent pension was a benefit in lieu of the CPF to which banks were to contribute 10 percent of pay as mandated by the Employees Provident Fund Act, which amount they had to detain as deferred wages for payment to the employee on cessation of employment. Pension Funds were created in 1995 by transfer of such CPF of serving employees and that refunded by employees who retired on or after 01st January, 1986 who were given coverage under Pension Scheme. Pension being paid out of the Pension Funds which is the money, property and deferred wages of employees kept in trust by banks, brings in no burden to banks for paying it. Bank employees are not paid the pension mandated by the Pension Regulations not withstanding that the Pension funds of all banks have enough corpus and can foot two to four times the present pension to all pensioners without touching he corpus in the Funds. 

The caption to the report that "Government gives hefty pension boost to bank employees" thus turns out to a superlative lie that creates a false impression in the minds of people and in judicial circles and is prejudicial to the interest of retired bankers whose retirement benefits for survival is being pilfered by banks and government. The hymns in praise of the Finance Minister by the Secretary at the press conference is seemingly to please her to the extent she was merely assenting to the increase in family 3 pension which was one of the residual issues considered and agreed upon in the Bipartite Settlement between IBA and bank unions/associations in the industry, months after signing the settlement. 

Times of India had brought into lime light that the Finance Minister had, at the 73rd Annual General Meeting of IBA, exhorted its Chairman as also the Chairman of State Bank of India some ten months back that bank pensioners be given OROP as in the case of defence pensioners. But her aspirations are neglected by the people she manages and pension in banks is not revised so far. It can remind anyone the famous rendering of the legend singer S P Balasubramanian "Ennati Meenachi, nee sonnathu ennachi?, Nettodu nee sonna varthai, kattodu poyachee" { what you told yesterday has gone with the wind, Meenachee }. What was happening is that pension is not updated in banks when such updating is out of the Pension Funds of banks { which is the deferred wages of employees } and is with no cost either to banks or to government. 

What is happening now is that when Pension Funds are applied into the revenue account of banks to show inflated profits for gaining incentives to the Chairmen when in terms of the Pension Regulations, the money in them cannot be applied for any purpose than payment of pension in terms of the Regulations { Regulation 5 (2) of Pension Regulations which can be searched in Google }. Times of India is hereby requested to probe into matters and to give a corrigendum report based on real facts for the benefit of the public and bank pensioners in particular. Times may also show reasons as to why appropriate legal action for damaging the interests of bank pensioners shall not be initiated against it in case of default.

 Thanking You,

 Yours faithfully,

 C N VENUGOPALAN 

Copy to: 

Shri Debasish Panda, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance

--