Driving Naari Programme launched in Chandigarh
Chandigarh
The cash-strapped Punjab Government is in no position to retire its employees at the age of 58. Thus, the policy of granting two-year extension, post the attainment of age of superannuation, will continue.
A top official in the Finance Department told The Tribune that the state needed Rs 2,000 crore to pay as retirement benefits to superannuating employees. Since the state government has limited resources at its disposal, considering poor revenue collection and a huge expenditure being incurred on the 550th Parkash Purb celebrations, it can’t shell out dues of retiring employees.
The Congress government had initially decided that only one-year extension would be granted after retirement, so that it could recruit more youngsters for government jobs. It was the previous Akali-BJP government that had started granting one-year extension to retiring employees, and later it decided to give another year’s extension, hence raising the retirement age to 60. Sources in the Finance Department said the state’s fiscal health continued to be “precarious”, as the GST share from the Centre was not being released in time. Officials said the Centre owes Punjab Rs 2,000 crore, under this head for the ongoing fiscal. The state has got just Rs 5,748.16 crore as GST, in the first six months of this year, as against Rs 17,109.56 crore that the state should get under the head. The state’s expenditure has also increased manifold in the Q2, mainly because of the Parkash Purb festivities.
