Ailing teacher fails to get pension even after 14 years

JAIPUR: For Chandrakanta Kamra, the ageing cardiac patient and a retired school teacher, 14 years of unrelenting wait for some action from the Rajasthan government which could restore both her pride and superannuation benefits, has not been enough.
Although cases of such nature exist in hundreds across the tables of babus in the Secretariat and in the education directorate, her case assumes significance as successive governments in a decade and a half could only push her and her government servant-turned-social activist husband, Gyan Prakash Kamra, into the grip of various ailments.
However, she and her husband have been able to collect all the documents and correspondence with the offices concerned including the chief secretary and the chief minister's office which clearly suggest that she has been harassed. All this speaks volumes about the monumental apathy, particularly of the senior bureaucrats at the helm.
"T Srinivasan also did the routine and directed the officials to examine the matter when we met him recently," claimed Chandrakanta.
Despite her promotion orders based on merit way back in 1998, Chandrakanta did not get any benefits that come with the promotion. She had also been promoted as headmistress in the same year but retired as a teacher in September 2008 sans all the perks and benefits.
Chandrakanta told TOI that her efforts to meet chief minister Ashok Gehlot since he assumed office, yielded no results. "Srimat Pandey the principal secretary with state government has been preventing us from meeting the CM, which has been our last wish so that we could apprise Gehlotji about how the common man suffers at the hands of insensitive babus," said the retired teacher.
She questioned, "What is my fault? It has been the Directorate of Education's fault of not giving me my due. My husband and I have been running from pillar to post just to get my dues and respect back." She added that Bhaskar A Sawant, director, secondary education has been most uncooperative.
"Since the directorate has been at fault, they fear that hundreds of such cases would emerge. Thus they are prevaricating on this issue and tossing the file from one table to another in the department." Sawant was not available for comments.
Meanwhile, the old couple spend time by raising issues of individual and collective concern. Gyan Prakash Kamra, an old crusader within his own rights has been active in helping all those retired persons with his expertise on government offices. "Although our grievances have not been redressed by the government, we try to help every one," he said.
Kamra, a retired CAG employee has been active in protesting against the insult to the national tricolour.