Retired employees of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) petitioned the District Collector on Monday demanding payment of increased dearness allowance (DA), which they have not been receiving since 2016.
The pensioners said there were 86,000 retired TNSTC employees in the State. According to them, the DA paid to the pensioners now stood at 119% though they were eligible to receive 196 %.
Though the rate of DA for TNSTC employees increased every six months, there was no revision in the DA paid to pensioners for the past 78 months. Pensioners were receiving around ₹ 6,500 less every month due to this, apart from the arrears to be paid, they said.
According to the petitioners, the issue was brought to the attention of the former AIADMK government multiple times and it was not resolved. The petitioners alleged that M.K. Stalin as the then leader of the Opposition had promised to settle the issue if DMK came to power. However, the new DMK government with Mr. Stalin as the Chief Minister was yet to resolve the matter, they alleged.
The pensioners under the banner of the Federation of TNSTC Retired Employees’ Welfare Associations petitioned 30 District Collectors across Tamil Nadu on Monday. The federation has announced to stage protests in front of the headquarters of the eight divisions of the TNSTC across Tamil Nadu on Tuesday.
