How long can a state pension last in Pakistan? A civil servant is entitled to an old-age pension after 25 years of service. It continues until the death of the pensioner and is then converted into a family pension for the heirs. According to Punjab`s pension rules, family pension goes to the widow of the deceased. After the death of the widow, it cannot be claimed by surviving sons over 24 years of age, unmarried daughter or eldest widow, or even by the eldest widow of the deceased son of the pensioner. If there is no beneficiary left from the second generation, the family pension is paid to the surviving eldest son or to the unmarried or widowed daughter of the pensioner`s deceased son. The proposal to abolish the widow`s pension was presented as part of the tax reforms in the next budget. According to the recommendation, the pensioner`s parents, in particular the widow and the unmarried daughter, are no longer entitled to a pension in the event of death. Currently, if a pensioner dies, his widow or daughter or sister can apply for his monthly pension if she is financially dependent on him. If a public servant is injured, killed or dies as a result of injuries sustained in the performance of his or her public duties, he or his or her family may receive an extraordinary pension or benefit in accordance with the regulations. Does the author want to focus on those of us who have no pension at all??? Will he recommend to the government a policy in which some of the money saved by properly sizing the system of government goes to us, the working poor? Academics live in ivory towers, political buffs seem to live in palaces of gold and silver.
«If we want to increase the volume of the development budget, we need to reduce the huge amount spent on pensions,» he said, saying they initially raised the retirement age in the province by three years to save money. Total pension liabilities of the federal government and the Länder accounted for a quarter of the revenue collected by the RBF last year. This year, cumulative annual pension payments are expected to reach one trillion rupees. These pension obligations go beyond the huge pension payments in various state-owned enterprises. Some 34 percent of Pakistan Post`s budget, for example, now goes only to paying pensions, while the 40 billion rupees given to Pakistani railways this year will go entirely to servicing pension payments, which now far exceed employees` salaries. The pension is granted to a civil servant who, under regulations, has the right or obligation to retire at a certain age. Currently, a civil servant is retired at the age of 60. «Starting next year, we are considering abolishing the pension for widows and other family members of deceased retirees,» he said, adding that by raising the retirement age, they have made savings that have now been spent on the Sehat Insaf card in the province. Please stop this. The main pension bill is the military bill. Retirees mainly keep their Lumsum amount in national savings, which means the money goes back to the government. This aspect is ignored.
Retirees won`t care if the government starts issuing savings certificates directly. The pension bomb is on, and it is only a matter of time before it explodes. If not defused early enough, the state may find itself faced with a dilemma over who to pay – its employees, its retirees or its citizens. There simply won`t be enough for all three to claim a share. The government is seriously considering abolishing the pension of widows and other family members of deceased pensioners in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province in order to reduce the government`s financial debts and control the ever-growing budget deficit, reliable sources told the Express Tribune on Saturday. For the current fiscal year 2020-21, the pension allowance is Rs 86 billion compared to the development budget of Rs 104 billion. In this regard, the budget white papers are instructive for the K-P and Punjab governments this year. Pensions in Punjab have increased by 24% a year, far outpacing income growth of 13%. In K-P, pension payments have increased nominally by 7.8 times over the past 10 years. In addition, K-P currently has 166,000 retirees, but a workforce of 530,000. This is expected to quadruple the number of retirees over the next 30 years.
What is really frightening, besides the size, is the rate at which pensions are increasing. There are several reasons for this abnormal growth. First, the duration of pension payments for an employee or his or her family is much longer than his or her years of service and can be 1.5 to four times longer. This means that the number of new entrants to the pension system is much higher than the exit rate. The ever-increasing size of government is also massively increasing the liabilities of government pension plans. And as if that were not enough, the increase in life expectancy has also boosted the longevity of pensions, and this trend is expected to continue. If an official is selected for dismissal as a result of the abolition of a permanent post, he may, unless appointed, receive a pension or benefit to which he is entitled, for the period of service he has already completed. There are two different scenarios for this type of pension.
These absurd rules are not specific to Punjab and are widespread in all provinces with some variations. Our government, which had to borrow last year to pay off the interest costs on its debt, not to mention repay loans or even run the government, is taking care of its employees through such a generous pension system that spans three generations and perhaps more than a century. Let it sink. The invalidity pension is granted to civil servants who are permanently unable to work in the civil service or in the particular branch to which they belong because of physical or mental infirmity. However, the infirmity must be attested by a duly constituted medical association. «If we save money, it will be spent on other welfare projects that are beneficial to the general public,» he said, adding that in the next phase they will set a certain age for retirees, after which no pension will be paid. If you work for the government, rest assured that the government will find someone to receive your pension long after you leave. It is possible, but unlikely, that government employees who were in the service of the Indian government during World War I still have a family pension today. Believe it or not, our state pension regulations can adapt to such a scenario. «It could be 70 or 75 years,» he said, adding that the total volume of the pension budget is increasing to Rs 94.60 billion next year and reaching the Rs 104 billion mark in the coming years.
In addition to the size, the rate at which pensions are increasing is truly frightening. If an official is likely to retire before his pension has been definitively assessed and is eligible for an early pension.