Government employees can get great news in the new year. The exercise of preparing the general budget for the financial year 2023-24 has started. Meanwhile, the Finance Minister has been demanded to increase pension under social security and make adequate provision for maternity benefits. Let’s know the latest update.
The new year can bring many great news for government employees. While on the one hand there is talk of sealing many big decisions related to salary, on the other hand there are chances of increase in pension and maternity benefits. Actually, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the budget for the next financial year (Union Budget 2023) on February 1, 2023. Along with this, the preparations for the budget are also going on at a fast pace. Meanwhile, big economists have demanded to increase pension under social security and make adequate provision for maternity benefits before the budget of the next financial year.
Demand to increase pension
In fact, economists have demanded the Finance Minister to increase pension under social security and make adequate provision for maternity benefits. For this, he has written a letter to the Finance Minister. Those who have signed the letter include Jean Dreze, Professor Emeritus at Delhi School of Economics, Pranab Bardhan, Professor Emeritus at University of California Berkeley, R Nagaraj, Professor of Economics at Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IIDR), Mumbai, IIT Delhi Professor of Economics Ritika Khera, Honorary Professor of JNU Sukhdev Thorat and others are included. The economists who signed the letter have also demanded full implementation of maternity rights under NFSA norms in the budget for the financial year 2023-24. Let us tell you that at least Rs 8,000 crore will be required for this.
A letter was also written to the former Finance Minister
According to the information given by the news agency language, economists have told in this letter that they had earlier written letters to former Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on December 20, 2017 and December 21, 2018. He has written in this letter, ‘We are reminding you again through the letter. We have tried to identify 2 priorities for the next Union Budget. In this, first, there is a provision for increase in pension for social security and second, adequate maternity benefits.
It has also been written in the letter that the central government’s contribution to the pension of the elderly under the National Old Age Pension Scheme (NOAPS) has remained stagnant at just Rs 200 per month since 2006. While this is not correct. The central government’s contribution should be increased immediately to at least Rs 500 (if possible more). In fact, in view of the rising inflation, this demand has been raised earlier also from the pensioners.
Discussion on widow pension is also possible
The letter states, “Based on the existing 2.1 crore pensioners, an additional provision of around Rs 7,560 crore is required for this. Similarly, the pension for widows should be increased from Rs.300 per month to Rs.500 per month. It has been told that the pension item for widows will cost Rs 1,560 crore.
