Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has let out a genie. His government recently announced that it was restoring the old pension scheme (OPS) for its employees, thereby discarding the contributory scheme that had come into effect after India initiated bold pension reforms nearly two decades ago. Several state governments, especially those ruled by parties opposed to the BJP-led Union government, are preparing to follow Gehlot’s lead.
Economists have pointed out that such a populist move would be retrograde, as it can drain state finances. Several states have latched on to the idea, though. In Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh, where the party’s flagship income guarantee scheme NYAY is being implemented for farmers and the landless, the restoration of OPS is set to become a pillar of the party’s evolving alternative economic model. The Congress has already promised to bring back OPS if it comes to power in Himachal Pradesh, where elections are due later this year.
DMK-ruled Tamil Nadu and YSR Congress-ruled Andhra Pradesh have also promised to revert to OPS. The Samajwadi Party’s campaign promise to restore OPS in the run-up to the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls helped it win a majority of postal votes (51 per cent) cast by government employees. For political parties, the electoral gains to be had from backing OPS seem evident now.
Esta historia es de la edición April 17, 2022 de THE WEEK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición April 17, 2022 de THE WEEK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.
Men eye the woman's purse
A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.
When trees hold hands
A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges
Ms Gee & Gen Z
The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.
Superman bites the dust
When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.