Representatives of Haryana govt employees demanding OPS restoration to take out cycle march in June

Representatives of the Haryana government employees seeking restoration of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) will be taking out a cycle march next month in the state in support of their demand.

The 'OPS Sankalp Cycle Yatra' will begin from Nangal Choudhary in Mahendragarh district on June 2 and culminate with handing over a memorandum to Haryana governor in Chandigarh on June 23 by the government employees' body -- 'Pension Bahali Sangharsh Samiti'.

The employees' body has decided to continue their struggle till their demand is met.

''We will be taking out OPS Sankalp Cycle Yatra from Nangal Chaudhary to Chandigarh on June 2. The yatra will pass through Rewari, Palwal, Faridabad, Gurugram, Jhajjar, Rohtak, Charkhi Dadri, Bhiwani, Hisar, Sirsa, Fatehabad, Kaithal, Jind, Sonipat, Panipat, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Yamunanagar, Ambala before reaching Panchkula on June 22,'' Samiti chief Vijender Dhariwal told a news conference here on Saturday.

''The yatra will culminate with submission of a memorandum to the governor in Chandigarh on June 23,'' he said.

The cycle march will also make people aware about the demands of the employees, Dhariwal said, adding that ''vote for OPS'' will be the tagline of the yatra.

When asked that opposition parties including the Congress have promised to restore OPS if voted to power in next year's Haryana assembly polls, Dhariwal said the incumbent government still has time to accede to the employees' demand.

''Government still has time and they have to take a decision (on restoring OPS),'' he said.

''All opposition parties are making promise (to restore OPS). But when polls are announced, employees will decide which way to go and whom to trust,'' he said replying to the question.

Dhariwal said state executive members and other office bearers of the Samiti will be part of the yatra while the government employees from a particular district will join it when it passes through that district.

''We will continue our struggle till OPS is restored,'' he said in response to another question.

He said the Haryana government had in February this year formed a committee to hold discussions with the representatives of the Samiti.

''After March 3, we have not been called for any meeting. We don't want to protest on roads, we also want resolution to all this. Now, it is up to the government. Our demand is not something which cannot be met,'' he said.

In February, police had used water cannons and teargas shells to disperse a large gathering of state government employees holding a demonstration for the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme in Panchkula.

A day after the protest, the state government set up the committee for discussion on the demand for the OPS in place of the New Pension Scheme in respect of government employees recruited on or after January 1, 2006.

The OPS, under which the entire pension amount was given by the government, was discontinued in the country from April 1, 2004. However, the pension amount is contributory under the National Pension System, which is in effect from that year.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)