The Telangana High Court ordered the state government on Monday to pay retired government employees a portion of the pension that was withheld during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with six percent interest.
A Telangana High Court bench comprised of chief justice Ujjal Bhuyan and justice N Tukaramji emphasised that the Telangana government should follow the Supreme Court’s instructions and clear out the pension dues with added interest to it.
Along with this, the court also dismissed a group of petitions and PILs filed by pensioners seeking 12 percent interest on the unpaid pensions.
However, the government objected to the order, claiming that the decision to postpone payment of salaries and pension payments was made due to the state’s unstable financial situation arising from the outbreak of COVID-19.
It went on to say that the state had acted responsibly and that there was no reason to subject it to the burden of paying interest.
The interest rate on pensions was reduced from 12% to 6% by the Supreme Court in 2021.
Pensioners must submit verification documents by March 31
The Telangana government urged state government pensioners to submit required documents by March 31, 2023.
Pensioners in Hyderabad and Secunderabad must submit the verification certificate along with an attested passport-size photo attested by a Telangana government gazetted officer.
The documents may be submitted via post or submitted in person. Pensioners can also use the T-APP Folio mobile application or the biometric method and the Aadhar card at Mee-Seva. They could also go to the Jeevan Praman website. Pensioners who submit their certificates through the T-APP will be given preference.
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