Maharashtra: Over 17 lakhs employees hold indefinite strike for implementation OPS

Approximately 17 lakh employees of the Maharashtra government are set to participate in a one-day strike on Thursday, advocating for the implementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Despite a meeting between state government officials and employee union representatives on Wednesday evening, the discussions failed to reach a resolution. Consequently, the unions have decided to proceed with their initial plan of staging a strike starting from December 14.

This is the second strike by Maharashtra government employees demanding OPS. In March 2023, after a similar strike, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had announced the setting up of a committee comprising former senior bureaucrats Subodh Kumar, K P Bakshi and Sudhir Kumar Shrivastava to study the old and new pension schemes, Indian Express reported.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, on Thursday, stated that CM Eknath Shinde has assured government employees demanding the restoration of the old pension scheme (OPS) that a decision on it will be taken before the upcoming budget session. The state legislature's budget session is generally held in February-March every year.