Haryana: Thousands of Govt employees protest demanding old pension scheme in Panchkula, police use tear gas to disperse them; watch visuals

Haryana: Thousands of Govt employees protest demanding old pension scheme in Panchkula, police use tear gas to disperse them; watch visuals

Thousands of state government employees came together in Panchkula on Sunday to urge their demand for the reinstatement of the Old Pension Scheme as Haryana prepares for elections later this year.

In order to urge their demand, thousands of Haryana government workers assembled on the Panchkula-Chandigarh border, and attempted to enter the Union Territory, and march towards the chief minister's mansion and "gherao" it.

The Haryana Police eventually dispersed the protests using water cannons. The agitators were also fired at with tear gas rounds.

As the Old Pension Scheme has been implemented in the states of Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh that are run by the Congress, government employees in Haryana are calling for its restoration.

A member of Old Pension Scheme (OPS) Restoration Struggle Committee told news agency PTI: "Restoration of OPS is a legitimate demand. Governments of Rajasthan, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have restored it. The Haryana government has given an excuse that the government will go bankrupt if OPS is restored, which is not correct."

In Jharkhand, where the Congress is a junior member in the ruling coalition led by the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, the old pension plan has also been implemented. That also applies to Punjab, a state governed by the AAP.

"Around 70,000 employees have gathered today to protest. In Rajasthan, the Old Pension Scheme has been implemented. This BJP govt doesn't talk to the employees. We will continue our peaceful protest," Praveen Deshwal, spokesman for the Pension Bahali Sangharsh Samiti, told news agency ANI.