There is good news for government employees. Preparations for the 8th Central Pay Commission to be implemented from January 1, 2026 have started. According to a report by Business Standard, Employees’ organizations have submitted a long list of their demands to the government, which have been appealed to keep in mind. Major demands of organizations include restoration of old pension scheme, cashless treatment facility, children’s education and hostel expenses, and separate allowance and insurance coverage for risky working employees. The recommendations of this commission will affect around 45 lakh employees and 68 lakh pensioners, including people of defense and paramilitary forces.
Demand for return of old pension intensifies
The biggest demand of employees is that people admitted after 2004 also get the benefit of Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Right now they get pension under the new pension scheme (NPS), which is based on contribution and benefits are less. Employees want them to get fixed and safe pension after retirement, as earlier. Along with this, it has also been said that the pension amount should be increased every 5 years and the old pensioners should get equal benefits.
Treatment facility should be fully cacheless
Employees have also kept some important things about treatment. He says that even today many employees and pensioners have to pay money from pockets for treatment and later have to face a long mess of refund. Therefore, it has been demanded from the government that completely cashless medical facility should be implemented, in which retired employees receiving pension also get equal treatment. Especially for retired employees of the postal department, the system needs to be improved further.
Help in children’s education too
In view of expensive education, the employee organizations have said that the government should help in spending the expenses of children. They want all the employees to get education allowance for children’s education, and if the child studies in hostels, then hostel subsidy should also be given. This assistance should be available to post graduation level, so that there is no obstruction in children’s higher education.
Those who do dangerous work received separate allowance and insurance
There has been a demand to provide risk allowance and insurance protection for employee weapons, chemicals, acids and explosives like manufacturing or storage of dangerous things. The demand for special risk and hardship allowance for railway employees has also been raised, so that people who work in a risky environment daily get compensation according to their hard work and risk.
Demand for change in MACP scheme
MACP i.e. Modified Assured Career Progression is a scheme under which those employees who do not get promotion for a long time. Now the employees want the scope of this scheme to be increased and it should also include Gramin Dak Sevaks, Paramilitary Forces personnel and employees of autonomous institutions running under the government. Also, by eliminating some old and irrelevant pay scales, it has been said to mix them in a new and practical scale.
Preparation to decide a new scale of expenditure
Employees’ organizations say that the Standard Consumption Unit (SCU) should be increased from 3 to 3.6. This unit shows how much the daily needs of an average person are, and it is used to fix the minimum wage and the basis of government spending. If this suggestion is accepted, then the government spending will increase and the initial salary for the employees can also be fixed.
Sarkara will brainstorm on suggestions
The government has not yet formally formed the Commission, but for this the Terms of Reference (Tor) means the process of deciding the scope of work. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in Parliament that the suggestions from the employees have been recorded and now the Department of Personnel Department (DOPT) and the Department of Expected will analyze them and send the final draft to the cabinet.
Significantly, when the seventh pay commission came into force in 2016, the government was burdened with an additional burden of about Rs 1 lakh crore. In such a situation, the government will now have to run a balance between the expectations of the employees and the budget.