PESHAWAR: Police here on Wednesday used teargas to disperse protesting teachers, who were demanding of the provincial government to award them monthly pension instead of contributory pension fund after retirement.

The teachers also blocked the busy Grand Trunk Road for some time outside the Government Higher Secondary School No.1, causing huge traffic congestion on the main artery of the provincial capital. The road was reopened to traffic after police dispersed the protesters by firing teargas shells at them.

The teachers, under the banner of Young Teachers Association, reached GHSS No.1 from different areas and blocked the road. They chanted slogans against the government and in favour of their demands.

One of the teachers told Dawn that monthly pension was their rights for which they were making efforts for the last one year but in vain. He said that they were serving as teachers at state-run schools before the authorities abolished the monthly pension and introduced contributory fund being given to government servants on their retirement.

Protesters were demanding monthly pension instead of contributory pension fund after retirement

All Primary Teachers Association provincial president Azizullah Khan told Dawn that 34,000 teachers were appointed at government schools on ad hoc basis from 2017 to 2019. “These teachers were regularised through a law passed by the provincial assembly in September 2022 with seniority from the date of their appointment,” he added.

However, he alleged, provincial finance department and Accountant General Office through a conspiracy deprived the regularised teachers of the monthly pension, which was abolished in July 2022. He said that teachers were put in the category of contributory fund.

It is pertinent to mention that in May 2022, provincial assembly passed a law to abolish pension and gratuity facility for future government employees after retirement and introduce contributory pension for them from July 2022. The house unanimously passed KP Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill, 2022.

Through an amendment to the bill, KP Civil Servant Act 1973’s Section 19, which entitles a government servant on retirement to pension or gratuity, was replaced with a new section providing for contributory pension fund for the future staff members of public sector departments and organisations.

“A person to be appointed on regular basis to a service or post in the prescribed manner, on or after the commencement of KP Civil Servants Amendment Bill, 2022, shall for all intent and purposes, be civil servant, except for the purpose pension and gratuity, be entitled to receive such amount contributed by him towards contributory provident fund, along with the contributions, made by the government to his account in the said fund,” reads Section 2 of the bill.

A senior official in the elementary and secondary education department told Dawn that it was a complex issue because the teachers were appointed on ad hoc basis when pension was not abolished but they were regularised at a time when pension was replaced with contributory fund.

He said that according to the rules for contributory funds framed by Accountant General Office, the law was applicable on those government employees, who were either appointed or regularised after July 2022.

He said that finance department had also sought opinion of law department about the issue and the latter said that regularised teachers were entitled to contributory funds and not for monthly pension.

The official said that education department recently again forwarded the matter to law department to review its opinion earlier given in that regard. He said that the issue was under-consideration.

Published in Dawn, December 28th, 2023