After facing crushing defeat in the recently concluded lok Sabha polls, the Virbhadra Singh-led Congress Government in Himachal has dropped plans to extend retirement age of employees, something that was on the cards to tide over a financial crunch.
The power lobby of Government employees, who has about 3 lakh and in percentage terms are one of the highest in the country in relation to its population base, are counted upon as important opinion makers capable of swaying an election either way.
As Congress poll managers began to analyse voting patterns, especially in Shimla rural Assembly constituency that is represented by the Chief Minister himself, it has emerged that where the Congress has a marginal edge over the BJP on rural voting booths but when voting in urban booths in Shimla city extended zone were counted, the votes were largely for a Modi Government.
With a lot of employees due for retirement over the next two years and the Government’s inability to raise revenues to tide over a financial crunch, a section of the employees had asked the Chief Minister to raise retirement age as it would defer outgo of the financial dues of retiring employees. The deferred cost could be passed onto the next Government after elections are held in 2017.
However, noting that despite having given the best terms to employees, the party had not fetched votes, the Chief Minister three days ago announced that retirement age would not be increased from 58 to 60 for State employees.
Furious at having failed to prevail upon the Opposition party in his own constituency, where the Chief Minister handsomely won in December 2012 elections without even visiting the constituency, Virbhadra also ordered closing down a special Chief Minister constituency cell in the Secretariat. The cell provided privileged services, over others, to the constituents.
Be it a BJP or a Congress Government, both have maintained cozy relationships with the employees. The big Government in a small State has seen the employee cadres swell with Education department alone employing about 1 lakh people.
The employee cost on the state exchequer is so heavy that out of every Rs 100 earned, as much as 70 to 75 per cent goes as employees salary or as pensions of retired employees.