by Vinod Chandrashekhar Dixit
Retired officers and workmen from nationalised banks and the State Bank of India (SBI) have expressed deep concern over the lack of progress on pension updation, despite a provision in place for over 30 years. The demand, rooted in the pension settlement signed on October 29, 1993, remains unresolved, causing increasing financial stress among retirees.
K.V. Acharya, President of the All India Bank Pensioners and Retirees Confederation (AIBPARC), has been leading efforts to ensure that bank pensioners are treated as a homogeneous group, with pension revision aligned with that of Central Government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) pensioners. AIBPARC, along with the All India Bank Retirees’ Federation (AIBRF), continues to seek formal consultation status, emphasizing that pensioners’ voices must be heard as primary stakeholders.
Acharya reiterated the confederation’s key demands, including pension updation under Regulation 35(1) of the Bank Employees Pension Regulations (BEPR), 1995, following the RBI formula with effect from March 1, 2019, and the inclusion of the special allowance (introduced in the 10th Bipartite Settlement) for calculating gratuity and basic pension. Despite multiple representations to the Union Finance Minister by AIBPARC leaders, no concrete steps have been taken.
A. Raghavan, former General Secretary of the State Banks’ Staff Union (Kerala Circle), cited the Centre’s stance that there is no provision for pension updation in commercial banks. On July 31, Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad stated in the Lok Sabha that the pension scheme, a funded model, applies to employees retiring on or after January 1, 1986, under the 1993 bipartite settlement between the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU).
Acharya highlighted that the RBI has revised pensions twice and the central government does so regularly with pay commission implementations. However, bank retirees remain excluded, despite the Supreme Court’s observation that wage and pension revisions are inseparable. The Court affirmed that if an amendment benefits a class of pensioners, it must apply equally to all within that class, regardless of their retirement date.
With inflation rising and many early retirees receiving meager pensions, the retirees argue that the situation has become unsustainable. The legal heirs of deceased pensioners are also left with inadequate financial support.
Bank retirees are urging the Finance Ministry to address the long-pending issue of pension updation without further delay, ensuring dignity and financial security for those who once played a vital role in building the nationalised banking system.
