Failed meeting with Governor D Subbarao has led to stir.
The meeting between the employees and the top management of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) ended in a stalemate with Governor D Subbarao refusing to either press for an immediate withdrawal of the government’s notification to stop update of basic pension or to put it on hold for sometime instead of immediate implementation.
Consequently, the employees’ association of the RBI, including officers and employees, under the banner of the United Forum of Reserve Bank Officers and Employees have decided to go on strike on October 21. This would halt the clearing and settlement transactions in the entire financial system and also jam the electronic clearing systems. The most affected will be the interbank dealings, foreign exchange market transactions and bulk electronic payments under real-time gross settlement and electronic fund transfer.
According to sources close to the development, the governor, however, has assured to take up the matter with the government at a later stage for a suitable solution.
Official sources explained that update of pension refers to revising the basic pension upwards after every revision of pay scales. The RBI pension scheme is on the lines of the central government’s pension scheme in accordance with RBI circular dated March 1992. Employees have alleged that the withdrawal of the update of pension is a retrograde step since it is totally contrary to the decision of the central government to shower updation benefits both in salary and superannuation to millions of its own employees.
The other demands included grant of family pension at the rate of 30 per cent without ceiling in line with the central government scheme, computation of pension at an enhanced rate and improvement in pension scheme and gratuity consequent upon the acceptance of the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission report.
