Himachal cabinet nod to implementation of Old Pension Scheme from April 1

The Himachal Pradesh government on Friday decided to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) from April 1 in the state, according to an official statement issued here.

The Himachal cabinet, which was presided by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, gave its nod to the implementation of the OPS which would put a burden of Rs 1,000-crore on the state exchequer, it said.

The cabinet also approved the repealing of Himachal Pradesh Loktantra Prahari Samman Adhiniyam, 2021, and Himachal Pradesh Loktantra Prahari Samman Niyam, 2022, providing a monthly pension of Rs 11,000 per month to persons who were jailed during the Emergency, it said.

The cabinet decided that the employees will also be brought under the ambit of General Provident fund (GPF), the statement said.

The employees under the New Pension Scheme (NPS), who have retired after May 15, 2003, will be given OPS from the prospective date. The decision would put a burden of Rs 1,000-crore on the state exchequer during 2023-24 financial year, it added.

Sukhu said the decision has been taken after making necessary amendments in the rules.

The contribution towards NPS by the government and the employees would stop from April 1, 2023. If any employee wants to opt for NPS, he/she can give the consent to the government, he said.

The cabinet has passed a resolution, asking the Union government to return an amount of Rs 8,000 crore under the NPS to the state and asked the state Finance department to amend the rules and issue necessary instructions in this regard, the statement said.

In another important decision, the cabinet decided to engage 780 ASHA workers under National Health Mission (NHM) on an incentive basis to provide affordable and reliable healthcare to the people, it said.

It also gave its nod to the guidelines for the engagement of ASHA facilitators under the Community Process Programme in NHM.

The Cabinet decided to transfer Rs 600 per student to all girls, Schedule Caste (SC), Schedule Tribe (ST) and Below Poverty Line (BPL) boys of class 1 to 8 through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), in lieu of providing them free school uniforms, benefitting about 3.70 lakh students in the state, the statement said.

The Cabinet approved leasing out toll barriers under Himachal Pradesh Tolls Act, 1975, through auction-cum tender process for 2023-24.

Approval was also accorded to rationalize the engineering staff of the Forest department while the services of 26 engineering staff would be absorbed into Public Works Department, Jal Shakti Vibhag, HP State Industrial Development Corporation, HP State Electricity Board and HP Power Corporation Ltd, it said.

The Cabinet also approved merger of "excise civil areas" from Yol Khas Cantonment Board with the adjoining Gram Panchayats Rakkar, Baghni, Tangorti Khas and Narwana Khas.