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Journalism of Courage
VADODARA, JAN 28: The board of directors of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, at a meeting held in Dehradun yesterday, decided to revert its seven-month-old decision on the retirement age and fix it at 58 years, with benefits extendable till 60 years. The decision appears to have taken employees by surprise; many top-level officers have reportedly decided to avail of VRS, a move that could, say sources, cost the giant corporation Rs 300 crore.
Though the decision was taken on Wednesday, most senior officials had got wind of it four days in advance and began planning their retirement. In Gujarat, the first hints came during Chairman and Managing Director B C Bora’s visit here earlier in the week. “Virtually everyone with even a single grey hair on their head is now wanting to call it quits,” said a senior employee. Out of some 25 general managers in Vadodara, at least 15 are said to be putting in their papers.
Bora told The Indian Express today that the Board’s decision had followed the rethinkingamong top public-sector enterprises on extending the retirement age to 60 years. The logic, he said, was to ensure better prospects for others and to help reduce employee strength. He confirmed that the retirement benefits would be available up to the age of 60.
Asked about the expected losses of Rs 300 crore, Bora said, “The Board has taken a decision and submitted the proposal to the government and it is for the government to take the final decision.” At its meeting last June, the board had decided to extend the retirement age from 58 to 60 years in keeping with a decision of the Department of Public Enterprises of the Union Industries Ministry, the aim being to defer payment to lakhs of PSU employees and save an estimated Rs 5,000 crore.
