LAHORE - The Punjab Pensioners Association has written a letter to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for increasing pension keeping in view the rising inflation.
The letter reads: “During service, they (the pensioners) performed their duties honestly and in the best national interest. After retirement from service their income cut short and they have to live in meager amount of pension.”
It added: “In old age their responsibility increases and they have to arrange for lodging boarding, manage marriages of their children and many other liabilities to perform. There are many other factors that have paralysed the capacity of these senior citizens to exist honourably.”
The Punjab Pensioners Association Executive Body unanimously decided in a meeting to bring it into the notice of the prime minister requesting him to increase in pay of serving servants of the state besides increasing pension of the retired personals. However, during the financial year 2010-11, the salary of the serving servants was increased up to 50 per cent but in the case of retired employees, injustice was done and nominal increase of 15 per cent to 20 per cent of net pension was made.”
The pensioners reminding the PM that many requests were made for rectification of difference in increase of pension as compared with the increase in pay but it was not leveled. “We the senior citizens cannot agitate or stage protest and afford to strike, etc but only to make peaceful and humble requests, which yet to be taken due consideration. Nominal ad-hoc increase allowed by the government last year had provided some relief but soon it became ineffective because of raise in the living cost, constant increase in the rate of utility bills and price rocketing of essential and basic necessities.”
The letter also mentioned that almost all the pensioners are suffering from old age diseases while prices of medicines have also increased immensely and costly treatment consumes major part of their pension. Adequate increase in medical allowance is essentially required to ease the miseries of the ailing pensioners”, the association requested.