The Delhi High Court has asked President and Chief Executive of the apex co-op body NCUI- Dr Chandra Pal Singh Yadav and N Satyanarayan respectively to pay up the dues of pensioners who have approached the court for the relief.
The High Court took a dim view of the way the matter has been dealt with by the apex co-op body and asked them to sort it out sooner than later. Sensing the tough mood of the court, NCUI officials promised to pay by March 31, 2020. The next hearing of the matter is in April.
The issue has been gathering steam and the Delhi High Court was forced to call both the President and the CE of the apex body to be present in person in the court.
It bears recall that due to the dwindling fund from the Union Agricultural ministry in the wake of NCCT-NCUI stand off, NCUI has been hit too hard to fulfill several financial obligations including Dearness Allowances to the pensioners.
According to NCUI sources, three DAs have not been paid to the pensioners. The total amount involved is not much but just Rs 15 lac, said a source.
There are about 65 pensioners who have not been paid DA now for third time in a row. Tired of petitioning before the management the seniors approached the High Court for relief. The court has sympathetically dealt with their case and has ordered NCUI to pay their dues by 31st March.
Talking to Indian Cooperative, the NCUI Chief Executive admitted to the lapse but lamented that there is no provision of diverting funds to the Pensioners DA. “When I took over I cleared all their dues pending since 2012 a couple of years ago but after that the Ministry stopped giving us fund, leading to this situation”, stated Satyanarayan.
The diversion of fund to pay up pensioners’ Das is a matter which only the Board is competent to do, said Satyanarayan. Chandra Pal, President of the apex body will have to take the matter to the next board meeting as an agenda and get it passed to fulfill the promise made before the High Court, said an insider.
The only moot question is that both the President and the CE are retiring early next year and who finally takes this call is yet to be seen.
The NCUI dilly-dallying on the issue of pension arrears has also been in the court in the past and then it was at the intervention of the court that about 405 pensioners had got relief as they were able to get arrears of DA and the 6th Pay Commission differences since theyear 2009. The matter dates back to 2014 and Dr Dinesh was then CE.