Outrage Among Millions of Punjab’s Elderly Over Non-Receipt of Pensions; Effigies of CM and Finance Minister to be Burnt on May 8; Pensioners in Faridkot Stage Protest Outside Treasury Office; Major Agitation Announced…
Faridkot, May 6 (Alexander D’Souza): For the millions of Punjab government pensioners whose accounts are linked with the State Bank of India (SBI), the pension for the month of April has become a source of severe distress. The first week of May is drawing to a close, yet the pension amount has still not reached the accounts of these elderly citizens. Angered by the government’s dilatory attitude, pensioner organizations have sounded the bugle for an all-out battle. The organizations have issued a clear warning: if the pensions are not released immediately, effigies of the government will be burnt in front of Treasury Offices across the state on May 8 as part of a state-wide protest.
It’s the 6th of the Month, Yet Accounts Remain Empty:
Expressing their indignation, pensioner leaders stated that, typically, the pension amount would be credited to their accounts on the first day of every month. Today is May 6, yet their bank accounts remain eerily silent. Due to the absence of the customary “pension credited” notification on their mobile phones, elderly pensioners are grappling with immense mental stress and financial hardship. Furthermore, neither the government nor the bank has offered any clarification regarding the monthly installments due under the Revised Pay Scale.
Three Major Organizations Join Hands in Faridkot:
In response to this crisis, three prominent organizations in the Faridkot district have united to launch a concerted protest against the government.
Punjab Pensioners Union (PPU), Punjab Government Civil Pensioners Association,
Democratic Pensioners Front.
These organizations have jointly resolved to stage a vigorous protest on May 8 at 10:30 AM outside the Faridkot Treasury Office, where they will burn effigies of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema. ‘Government’s Attitude Towards the Elderly is Unfortunate’: Pensioners’ Leaders
In a joint statement, Prem Chawla, Inderjit Singh Khiwa, Sukhmander Singh Sandhwa, and Kulwant Singh Chani—key strategists and leaders of the pensioners’ movement—stated that those who dedicated their entire lives to the service of the government and the public are today compelled to take to the streets to demand their rightful pensions. They termed the Punjab government’s attitude as deeply unfortunate and insensitive. They warned that if pensions are not released with immediate effect, the agitation will be further intensified and escalated in the coming days.
Raising their voices on this occasion, a large number of pensioners and their representatives were present, including Subhash Chandra Sharma, Kulwinder Singh Maur, Somnath Arora, Principal Krishan Lal, Gurcharan Singh Sikh Wala, Iqbal Singh Manghera, Gurmeet Singh Jaito, Pooran Singh Sarwan, Tarsem Narula, Jagtar Singh Gill, and Surjit Singh Bhatti.
All the leaders unanimously demanded that the pension for the month of April be immediately transferred to the accounts of lakhs of pensioners, without resorting to any technical or administrative excuses.
News: 6-3
Photo:
