A wave of hope is rising among teachers in Uttar Pradesh as the government prepares to review a long-pending demand regarding the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Thousands of basic teachers, especially from the BTC 2004 batch, may soon receive the benefit of the old pension, offering them long-awaited financial security.Decision Expected on April 22
A high-level meeting has been scheduled for April 22
, where Principal Secretaries from the Education, Finance, Personnel, and Justice departments will discuss the matter. If the outcome is favorable, around 46,189 teachers could be shifted back under the Old Pension Scheme.
The Background
The issue dates back to January 2004, when an advertisement was released for the recruitment of basic teachers holding a B.Ed degree. After selection, the candidates were required to undergo six months of training. However, the training process was delayed and divided into three phases, eventually concluding in December 2005
.
If the process had been completed without delay, the training would have ended in January 2005, which would have made the teachers eligible for the Old Pension Scheme.New Pension Scheme Became a Barrier
During this period, the New Pension Scheme (NPS) came into effect in the state on April 1, 2005. Since these teachers officially joined after December 2005, they were automatically placed under NPS. Teachers, however, blame the delay on the department’s mismanagement and have been seeking justice ever since.
Legal Battle and Supreme Court’s Observation
In pursuit of their rights, teachers approached the High Court and later the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court emphasized that the decision should depend on the merit of the case and notably clarified that if a recruitment advertisement was published before the implementation of NPS, employees should ideally be covered under the Old Pension Scheme. Following this, the central and state governments issued necessary orders for various departments, bringing fresh hope to these teachers.