Controversy Over Unified Pension Scheme: Congress Promises Old Pension Plan

Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda criticized the Centre's Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), calling it 'anti-employee' and a 'fraud.' He promised that if Congress wins Haryana's assembly elections, they will implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Hooda argued that both the UPS and NPS are detrimental to government employees, especially those in paramilitary forces.

Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda has slammed the Centre's Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), describing it as 'anti-employee' and a 'bigger fraud' than the New Pension Scheme (NPS). Hooda vowed that his party would win the upcoming Haryana assembly elections and reintroduce the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) in the state.

In Jhajjar on Tuesday, Hooda attended an event celebrating wrestler Aman Sehrawat's bronze medal win at the Paris Olympics. The Union Cabinet had approved the UPS on August 24, which guarantees a pension of 50 percent of the basic salary for employees who joined after January 1, 2004, upon completing 25 years of service.

Hooda emphasized that both the UPS and NPS are fundamentally flawed and particularly harmful to paramilitary forces. He claimed that under UPS, employees would only receive a fraction of their contributions, and pension would be significantly reduced due to the removal of dearness allowance (DA). The Congress MP reiterated that employees nationwide are rallying for the return of the OPS, which provided 50 percent of the last drawn basic pay as pension.

(With inputs from agencies.)