Taking a serious view of delay in disbursement of
retirement benefits, including pension and gratuity, to an employee of
the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), the National Human Rights
Commission (NHRC) has issued directions for an inquiry into the matter
for fixing responsibility of the officials concerned.
The
Commission had received a complaint from the wife of the retired
official belonging to the Scheduled Tribe. According to the complaint,
the employee was superannuated on March 31, 2014, after serving the BSNL
for about 40 years, but his terminal benefits were withheld by the BSNL
Chief General Manager.
According to the petitioner,
both of them were not keeping good health and were facing severe
financial constraints. They requested for NHRC’s intervention in the
matter.
In response to the Commission’s notices, the
Secretary, Department of Telecommunications, informed that some terminal
benefits, including death-cum-retirement gratuity and commutation value
of pension, were paid to the retired employee on January 21 this year.
However, the pension payment order was to be dispatched shortly.
On
perusal of the material on record, NHRC Member Justice D. Murugesan
observed that terminal benefits were paid only after the Commission
sought the report from the authorities on the complaint of the
employee’s wife.
