The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Rajasthan on Wednesday (August 28, 2024) announced an increase in the maximum limit in the gratuity amount for the employees from ₹20 lakh to ₹25 lakh in line with the Central government officials. However, no decision has been taken on the implementation of the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) introduced by the Centre.
The State Cabinet, which considered the issue of bringing UPS for the government employees at its meeting held here, did not arrive at a final decision. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Jogaram Patel said at a press conference after the meeting that there was a “thorough discussion” on the subject and a decision would be taken shortly in the best interest of employees.
The proposed introduction of UPS has led to political slugfest in the State, while the BJP government has maintained silence on the refund of the National Pension System (NPS) contribution amounting to ₹40,000 crore from the Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority following the restoration of Old Pension Scheme (OPS) by the previous Congress regime.
The State government employees have expressed reservations about the UPS because of lack of clarity, while former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said his government had requested the Centre several times to return the hard-earned deposits of employees towards the NPS contribution. Mr. Gehlot said the State government should clarify if it intended to continue with the OPS or bring in the UPS.
In other steps taken for the benefit of employees, the State Cabinet decided to increase the family pension, payable to the spouse of a deceased employee, by 10% and enhance the outpatient department (OPD) medical expenses ceiling for both the serving and retired employees from the current ₹20,000 to ₹30,000 per year.
Mr. Patel said the employees of district courts, who were not being given promotions and other benefits on having more than two children since 2002, would start getting these benefits. The State Cabinet extended the relaxation to the court employees on the lines of the similar decision taken for the government employees on March 17, 2023.
The Minister said other decisions of the State Cabinet pertained to land allotment for solar power projects, allotment of land to railways for gauge conversion in Rajsamand district and the allotment of 12-hectare land at Dahmi Kalan in Jaipur district for the construction of a technology centre for micro, small and medium enterprises.
