Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh Workers’ Union launch signature campaign, plan nationwide protest for pension

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The members of Madhya Pradesh workers’ union have been conducting a signature campaign for the past two-and-a-half months across the state, gathering people’s support to bring back the old pension provision into play, said a union member on Saturday.

The workers who come under the third and fourth category have been receiving even less salaries than before, they said. When they retire, according to the new pension provision, they would receive a pension amount somewhere between Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,500, they added.

The voices that the MP workers have raised have now reached the workers in Chhattisgarh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. The chairman of the national union, Jitendra Singh, said, “We are drawing more class three and four employees to the movement. We have been organising the signature campaign to garner support from the people for our demands. We will then take the signatures to the chief ministers and the Prime Minister.”

The workers’ union in Delhi too has called several meetings to discuss the work plan to hold a bigger protest meeting with staffers of other states and National Old Pension Restoration Association.

Worker Shankar Singh Sengar said, “If the elected people’s representatives are eligible for pension, why are these rights denied to those who have served for 60 to 62 years. It is impossible to survive in times of inflation with a nominal pension. Our families depend on the pension.”

“Exploitation of lower level employees is not acceptable. Lower grade employees should be given their rights without even asking as they need them the most. The benefits to the officers and employees of the affluent class are not stopped but we have to suffer every time and fight to get what we should have got without asking,” he added.