Bank retirees stage dharna in Vijayawada over failure to update pensions

More than 500 members of the Andhra Pradesh Bank Retirees’ Federation participated in a dharna in Vijayawada on Monday, condemning the failure to update pensions in line with wage revisions.

APBRF General Secretary A. Yella Rao said the bank employees’ pensions were originally linked to pay scales. However, while serving employees wages have been revised periodically, retirees pensions have not been correspondingly updated.

He added that in 1986-87, the basic pay index stood at 600 points, which rose to 8,088 points in 2022. However, retirees, who superannuated earlier, continue to receive pensions calculated on the outdated pay structure of 600 points or similar slabs, without any proportionate revision, he said.

This has resulted in severe disparity between past and present retirees and between serving employees and pensioners. The cost of living, medical expenses, and inflation have increased many times over, yet pension updation has been denied, he pointed out.

They also demanded ex-gratia payment to private bank retirees, pointing out that many retirees from private sector banks are not covered under pension schemes and are dependent on meager ex-gratia payments.

Their other demands include GST waiver on health insurance premium, implementation of L1 policy in health insurance scheme and a dialogue with the federation. The leaders demanded that the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and authorities immediately initiate dialogue with the federation to resolve long-pending issues amicably.