Justice for KSRTC retirees? Pension revision process under consideration

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The government has finally set the gears in motion to revise the KSRTC pension, marking the first major update since the last revision in 2011. This decision impacts approximately 43,000 pensioners who have been waiting over 14 years for a formal adjustment to their benefits. The move was largely triggered by the Transport Pensioners' Front, who took their grievances to the High Court. Although the court initially ordered the government to take action by January 5, it wasn't until a contempt of court petition was filed on April 6 that the file was finally transferred from the Transport Department to the Finance Department for processing.

The financial landscape of the KSRTC pension has shifted dramatically over the last decade. While the corporation was originally responsible for its own retirees, its deteriorating financial health forced the government to step in—first covering half the liability and eventually assuming the entire cost. For the past eight years, these pensions have been funded entirely by government assistance and distributed through cooperative societies. Under the current arrangement, the government provides roughly ₹73 crore per month to these societies to ensure the funds reach the pensioners.

Despite these efforts, many retirees have been living on stagnant incomes for years. Since the term of the last revision ended in February 2016, the government has only provided a small interim relief of ₹500 per month. The situation is particularly dire for more than 4,000 ex-gratia pensioners who receive just ₹1,350 monthly. These individuals were overlooked even when general welfare pensions were increased to ₹2,000. Many of them hold only white ration cards, meaning they do not qualify for free rations, while the majority of other transport pensioners struggle to get by on amounts ranging between ₹8,000 and ₹12,000.