UP Pensioners' Issues to be Resolved: Finance Minister

Lucknow, Feb 28 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Finance and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna on Wednesday said the government will ensure resolution of all the issues facing pensioners, including timely and error-free payment of pensions to them.

Inaugurating the new building of the Pension Directorate at the Institute of Financial Management Training and Research campus in Indira Nagar, Lucknow, Khanna said it will help enhance facilities for pensioners of the state.

According to a statement issued by the state government, the Finance Minister said, "Ensuring timely disbursement of pensions to pensioners should be our top priority. Pensioners must not face any kind of trouble. We have got the opportunity to serve the elderly and we must perform our duty."

Suresh Khanna urged the treasuries to develop a foolproof mechanism to ensure there are no errors in payment of pensions and the designated amounts are paid on time to the right beneficiaries.

"We must avoid complications like recovery due to incorrect disbursement", he said.

The Pension Directorate was established on June 2, 1988, to get pension cases of government employees settled within the state instead of at the Accountant General's Office.

Until now, the directorate was functioning on the eighth floor of Indira Bhawan, but due to insufficient space for document preservation and record-keeping, it has been relocated to the campus of the Institute of Financial Management Training and Research.

The renovation of this administrative building has been carried out by the Public Works Department at a cost of Rs 1 crore.

Currently, the directorate is handling pension cases of officers in the Group A category, members of various commissions, and employees of agricultural universities and technical colleges including the Khadi Board.

Besides, in case of death of personnel covered under the National Pension System while serving, there is a provision to sanction family pension to their dependents based on their option.

So far, the pension directorate has undertaken the resolution of pension cases of more than 81,000 employees.

Presently, action is being taken to issue an online pension authorisation letter through e-pension system, the statement read.