Pensioners voice anger over unfulfilled promises

Lovleen Bains

Doraha, April 8

The Government Pensioners Association, in a meeting held at KK Kaushal Memorial Bhavan at Doraha today, condemned the “anti-people, anti-pensioners and anti-employee policies” of the Punjab Government.

The association has decided to teach the government a lesson in the Lok Sabha elections. Gurmel Singh presided over the meeting.

Gurdial Dalal, secretary of the association, said not even a single demand of the pensioners was accepted as promised by the government during its election campaign in 2017.

The demands include, pending DA instalments w.e.f January and July 2017, January and July 2018 and January 2019. Only two instalments for January 2017 and July 2017 were announced, applicable from February 2019 and nothing was said about the pending arrears of DA instalments for more than 22 months, they said.

“Other demands include implementation of the 6th pay commission, increase in interim relief and medical allowance, restoration of old pension scheme and clearance of reimbursement of pending medical bills,” he said.

The pensioners together rued that if the government is insensitive to the demands of the elderly, how can it think in terms of gaining goodwill on humanitarian grounds.

“Not just the elderly, the mass exodus of youth to foreign lands pinches the government the least. If the government has just thought in terms of filling it own coffers, utterly neglecting the genuine demands and interests of those in need, it can never think in terms of coming to power again,” they added.

Due to the callous and adamant attitude of the government, the Government Pensioners Association has decided to organise a protest march on April 10 and hand over a memorandum to the SDM.

Pawitter Singh, Rupinder Singh, Jagir Singh, Murari Lal Goel and Harbhajan Rajgarh also participated in the meeting.