The office of Finance Minister has provided an opportunity to any citizen to submit suggestions on new Budget proposals. It is a different matter if your suggestion will be considered or accepted. But there is an opportunity for you. Visit the website www.mygov.in and submit your suggestion online. It should be brief. Nobody has time and patience to read lengthy Notes.

Today, I have submitted the following:

There are about 3 crore pensioners in India, including 65 lakh central service pensioners.

Pensionary benefits are not taxed, but pension of government employees and PSE pensioners are taxed.

Pension of MPs is not taxed on the plea that “ it is not salary but income from other sources”.

“Other sources” is nothing but Exchequer. Govt pensioners too get pension from same source.

Hence, PENSION of everybody should be out of tax net. Such a declaration by the MODI II Govt. will earn goodwill of 10-15 crore of people, though the beneficiaries may be 10% of that.

Taxes on Liquor and luxury items should be increased.

We do not produce gold. But we are second in the world in buying gold ornaments. This wealth is nonproductive; it helps neither the nation nor the society. Hence maximum tax should be imposed on gold transactions.

Tax on cars costing Rs 5 lakh or above may be increased.

.... P S Ramankutty ..

THE COURT CASES

As all of you know we had filed two cases before Ernakulam bench of Central Administrative Tribunal.

1. to get pension arrears with 78.2% IDA from 1-1-2007 instead of 10-6-2013, as granted. (Arrears Case in short)

2. to get pension refixed @ 50% of Last Pay Dawn for all BSNL Pensioners retired prior to 1-1-2006. (LPD case in short)

After many postponement again and again, The Arrears Case (338/18) is listed for 18-6-2019. We hope it will be taken up for hearing.

The LPD case (346/18) was also postponed again and again and finally listed for 7-6-2019. One day before that date it was re-posted for 12-6-2019 by notification. Again on 11-6-2019 it is once again posted to 21-6-2019 by notification.

Earlier there was only one judge. Now both judges are available. We hope that the Tribunal will take up the cases for hearing.

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ANOMALY CASE: On 16-12-2016, CAT Principal bench pronounced its judgement in our favour in the anomaly case . Unfortunately, instead of respecting the court order, DoT preferred to file appeal in High Court. The high court of Delhi gave a very long gap to consider the case. Now, it is posted to 18, July 2019. More than 4200 BSNL employees retired from October 2000 to July 2001 have suffered huge loss in their pension due to the anomaly. Half of them have already left this earth. Remaining people are 79 years old. They are waiting for the justice.

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Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, new Finance Minister will present her maiden budget on July 5. It is customary for the Finance Ministry to ask views and suggestions from various departments, organizations etc. on budget proposals. This time, the Department of Pension sought views of Pensioners Organizations also in this regard. Excited over this, many pensioners are sending all types of suggestions. Finally, the political leadership will decide the policy and accordingly will present the budget. We have no illusion.

However, we have suggested that PENSION SHOULD NOT BE TAXED.

Pension of MPs is not taxed. Why? It is said that their pension is not salary and that is income from other sources. Nothing but Government fund is the ‘other sources’. We are also getting pension from same government funds. Then why this discrimination?

Now, Assocham (Association of Chambers of Commerce in India) has suggested to raise income tax exemption limit to Rs 5 lakh in Budget “Considering the inflation over the years, tax exemption limit should be increased from Rs 2,50,000 to Rs 5,00,000,” the chamber’s memorandum to the Finance Ministry stated.

Twelve senior government officers, including a chief commissioner, principal commissioners and commissioner of the Income Tax Department, were directed by the Finance Ministry to retire under Rule 56 of the General Financial Rules (GFRs) on Monday.

Sources said some of these officers were found guilty of corruption, having illegal and disproportionate assets and sexual harassment.

Officers who were shown the door on Monday included Ashok Agarwal (IRS, 1985), Joint Commissioner (Income Tax) on grounds of serious complaints of corruption and major extortion from businessmen, S K Srivastava (IRS, 1989), Commissioner (Appeal), Noida, accused of sexual harassment of two women IRS officers of Commissioner rank, Homi Rajvansh (IRS, 1985) who had acquired movable and immovable assets worth over Rs 3 crore in the name of self and his family members and BB Rajendra Prasad on allegations of obtaining illegal gratification in lieu of passing a favourable appeal order in a case.

Congratulations to Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Finance Minister for the bold action.

Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad should order investigations into the disproportionate assets of former CMDs of BSNL and MTNL, including those who bought ERP for huge sum.

On 10-6-2019 Govt. of India has moved an application before National Company Law Tribunal to ban M/s Deloitte Haskins & Sells for five years for suppressing facts about the IL&FS which committed fraud of Rs 95000 Crore.

Yes Rs 95000 Crore!!

One company has total networth of Rs. 9 crore. The auditors suppressed the fact and helped the company to take loans of Rs. 223 crore.

Another Company has networth of Rs 85 crore.The auditors suppressed the facts and helped that company to get loans of Rs. 385 crore.

Who is Deloitte?

The great international auditors, engaged by BSNL some time back to restructure the BSNL. This fraudulent auditors suggested many structural changes of BSNL.

How can you expect that BSNL will escape from the crisis with such advisors and auditors?

,,,

The Palakkad disrict conference was held on 6-6-2019. Com. P S Ramankutty inaugurated it. Comrades P Narayanan Moosad (Kerala Circle President), T P George (CS), R N Pada Nair (AGS) and A P Saraswathy (AI Org. Secretary) addressed. The conference unanimously elected Comrades T Muralidharan, K T Ramanarayanan and M P Krishnadas as DP, DS and Dist Treasurer respectively.

The conference also formed a Reception Committee for the ensuring Kerala Circle Conference to be held on 15-10-2019 at Palakkad.

COMRADE T S VITTOBAN, CHQ TREASURER HAS SHIFTED TO HIS NEW RESIDENCE. HIS NEW ADDRESS IS GIVEN BELOW. ALL ARE REQUESTED TO NOTE THIS.

...

Shri T S Vittoban,
Block-A, Flat- D4,
Air View Apartments,
(Near City Union Bank),
M G Road,
Manappakkam, Mugalivakkam PO,
Chennai 600125

.

According to information received by us,

till date following donations are sent to Fani Relief Fund of our Odisha circle Unit:

CHQ: ... ... ... ... ... Rs 20,000

Tamilnadu Circle: ... ...Rs 10,000

Karnataka circle: ... ... Rs 10,000

East Godavari Dist: ... Rs 10,000

Ernakulam Dist: ... .... Rs 10,000

Vizianagaram Dist: ... Rs 10,000

Sambalpur Dist: .........Rs 10,000

Bangalore Dist; ... ... ...Rs 5,000

Chennai Tfc Dist: ... ... Rs 5,000

Jabalpur Dist: ... ... ...... Rs 5,000

Ara Dist: ... ... ... ........... Rs 5,000

Balaghat Dist: ..............Rs 2100

EAST GODAVARI DISTRICT UNIT IN ANDHRA HAS REMITTED Rs 10000 TO ODISHA FANI RELIEF FUND.

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KARNATAKA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION HAS REMITTED Rs 10000 TO THE ODISHA FANI RELIEF FUND

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BANGALORE TD UNIT HAS REMITTED Rs. 5000 TO ODISHA FANI RELIEF FUND

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CHENNAI TRAFFIC BRANCH HAS REMITTED Rs. 5000 TO ODISHA FANI RELIEF FUND

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Few days back, Mr. Arvind Panagriya, former Vice Chairman of NITI Ayog, now in America, suggested that the new Government should shut down one Central Public Sector Undertaking every week. Yesterday, Mr. Rajiv Kumar, present Vice Chairman of NITI Ayog (new outfit in place of Planning Commission) has suggested that within first 100 days 46 PSUs should be closed! Means three CPSUs should be shut down in a week at average.

The news appeared in THE WIRE is reproduced hereunder:

Delhi: In the first 100 days of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term, a slew of ‘big-bang’ economic reforms that should please foreign investors are likely to be pursued, according to a top official at the government’s main think-tank.

The reforms will include changes in labour laws, privatisation moves and creation of land banks for new industrial development, said Rajiv Kumar, vice chairman of NITI Aayog (National Institute for Transforming India), who reports directly to Modi.

“They (foreign investors) will have reasons to be happy. You will see a slew of reforms I can assure you of that. We are going to pretty much hit the ground running,” Kumar told Reuters in an interview.

COM. G R DHARMA RAJAN BEREAVED

Smt. D Ranganayagi Ammal (75), beloved wife of Com. G R Dharmarajan, Vice President of our Tamilnadu circle expired on 30-5-2019. Funeral has taken place on 31-5-2019.

Com. G R Dharmarajan was our District Secretary at Madurai and nurtured the Madurai SSA Unit as the biggest branch of AIBSNLPWA in the entire country.

We deeply express our sorrow on the demise of Smt. Ranganayagi Ammal and convey our condolences to Com. GRD and other members of the family.…

... P S Ramankutty …

ERNAKULAM SSA UNIT HAS REMITTED Rs 10000

TO THE FANI RELIEF FUND OF OUR ODISHA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION,

ON 29-5-2019.

ARA SSA UNIT OF AIBSNLPWA HAS REMITTED Rs 5000

TO THE FANI RELIEF FUND

OF OUR ODISHA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION.

......

TAMIL NADU CIRCLE ASSOCIATION HAS REMITTED A SUM OF

RUPEES TEN THOUSAND TODAY

TOWARDS THE FANI RELIEF FUND OF OUR ODISHA CIRCLE UNIT.

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The Sixth CPC submitted its report within stipulated time. Justice (Retd) B N Srikrishna and his team in sixth CPC did not bother to study the nature and responsibilities of various cadres in central services and recommend appropriate pay scales. Instead, they adopted a simple method: Add the Basic Pay and DA on 31-12-2005 and then grant a new element of Grade Pay. For Pensioners, the sixth CPC recommend a uniform benefit of 40% of Basic Pension. A serving employee with Basic Pay of Rs 5000 got increase of Rs 4200 as Grade Pay (84% of basic pay) plus consequent increase in HRA etc. For a Pensioner with basic pension of Rs. 5000 the increase was only Rs 2000. That was the brutal injustice done to pensioners by sixth CPC.

For the scale of Rs. 6500-10500, Rs 4200 was originally granted as Gr.Pay. Later on, the Finance Ministry issued an order on 13-11-2009 hiking the said Grade Pay to Rs. 4600. But, in 2017, for the purpose of Pension revision under seventh CPC, when the Department of Pension & Pensioners Welfare prepared Concordance Tables for the said payscale of 6500-10500, Grade pay of Rs. 4200 was only taken into account.

AIBSNLPWA immediately pointed out this and took up the case through Bharat Pensioners Samaj. Karnataka P&T Pensioners Association, a member in SCOVA, also took up the matter. DoP&PW was not willing to change their stand.

Some aggrieved pensioners approached CAT. In all the cases disposed, the CAT directed the government to grant modified benefit with Grade Pay of Rs 4600.

Now, it is reported that Department of Expenditure (Finance Ministry) has issued an order honouring the CAT judgements. DoP&PW has to circulate revised Concordance Tables No 24 and 25. Then only the CCAs can revise pension with effect from 1-1-2016.

WHO WILL GET THE BENEFIT?

All those DoT Pensioners retired from grade IV will get the benefit. Before October 1990, there were only few in grade IV in Telecom (in the pay scales of Rs 2000-3200 & 2000-3500). In 1990, BCR was introduced. 10 percent of Grade III was placed in grade IV. Later from 1-1-1996, they got the pay scale of Rs. 6500-10500. All those people retired from Grade IV before 1-10-2000 will get increase in their pension now. Once the revised Concordance Tables are issued by DoP&PW the concerned pensioners must apply to their CCAs with all available documents.

Note: above is not applicable to those BSNL staff retired after 1-10-2000 since there is no Grade Pay system in BSNL.

Sambalpur District Unit in Odisha has remitted a sum

of Rs. 10,000 to the Odisha Circle's FANI Relief fund.

CHQ OF AIBSNLPWA HAS REMITTED

A SUM OF RUPEES TWENTY THOUSAND (Rs. 20,000)

TO THE RELIEF FUND BEING RAISED BY

OUR ODISHA CIRCLE ASSOCIATION

TO HELP PEOPLE OF ORISSA

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ODISHA RELIEF FUND

CHQ calls upon all members all over the country to donate liberally to the Odisha Relief fund immediately. Branch Secretaries are requested to collect the same and remit the entire amount to the Current Account opened by our Odisha circle branch for the purpose. The details are available in he Special circular given below.

fani-circular.pdf

With Regards,

P Gangadhara Rao, General Secretary

Suggestion: Pension being granted to Ex Govt Servants and Family Pension being granted to spouses of Ex Govt Servants should not be taxed.

Reasons:

1.Pension is not salary. Even if it is treated as Salary, it is deferred payment, as observed by the Apex Court. When delayed payment is made as arrears of pay or pension, the whole amount is not accounted for the respective assessment year, based on Form 10E filed by the assessee.

2.Pension of Ex MPs and their spouses is not being taxed on the plea that “it is not salary but income from other sources”. The ‘source’ is nothing but Government Funds. They are paid pension by Government of India from government funds, not by the people who elected them. Family pension is paid to the spouses of deceased MPs and former MPs by Government of India not by the voters. At the same time, sitting MPs, Ex MPs and their spouses are entitled tobenefits at par with central government employees and pensioners in the matter of medical facilities under CGHS etc. While the pension to Ex MPs and family pension to spouses of Ex MPs is not being taxed there is no justification for taxing the pension being granted to Ex Government servants and spouses of Ex Employees who receive pension from the same source of Government funds.

2.Pension is not being taxed in countries like Brazil, Russian federation and Sri Lanka as well as number of states in USA.