Himachal Pradesh: Ahead of polls Congress and BJP lock horn on employees issue

SHIMLA: As the votes of government employees will play a crucial role in the Lok Sabha and Assembly bye-elections in Himachal, BJP and Congress have entered into a war of words on employees’ issues. Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur said that the Sukhu government is an anti-employee government and the issues related to employees are not being resolved. Countering this, industries minister Harsh Vardhan Chauhan said that Jai Ram Thakur should not try to become an advocate of government employees as they remember well who had challenged them to contest elections for their old pension and who had released water cannons on them for agitating on old pension and who had got them beaten with police batons.Jai Ram Thakur while campaigning for BJP candidate Kangana Ranaut from Mandi Lok Sabha on Monday had targeted the Congress government on employees’ issue. He said that when the BJP was in power, it implemented the recommendations of the Pay Commission that were pending during the Congress government. He said that previous BJP regime gave dearness allowance and other payments from time to time. Apart from this, he also enumerated other works done during his tenure.Industries minister Harshwardhan Chauhan said that the Congress government in Rajasthan had reinstated the old pension scheme for government employees, but it was revoked once the BJP came to power. Further added that the Congress government is the true well-wisher of employees as in its very first cabinet meeting, the government reinstated the old pension scheme for 1.36 lakh employees. Additionally, the government has granted a 7 percent dearness allowance during its 14-month tenure.Thakur said that the diet money for police employees has been increased fivefold to Rs 1000. Furthermore, the Congress government has looked after pensioners, providing financial benefits of up to Rs 3.5 lakh.He said that the Congress government has paid 35 percent arrears to pensioners above 75 years of age, 20 percent to those between 70-75 years, 18 percent to those aged 65-70 years, and 15 percent to those up to 65 years old. He said that orders to pay the entire arrears to the dependents of deceased pensioners and family pensioners were issued on March 13 this year.Thakur also highlighted that as the state's economic condition improves, the Congress government will provide further financial benefits to government employees. He accused BJP leaders of being experts in lying and creating obstacles, mentioning that Himachal BJP leaders are pressuring the union government to delay the release of Rs 9000 crore of NPS funds and pressuring the Election Commission to stop the Rs 1500 pension for women.