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| - Fact Check: Baseless rumours about slashing pension create panic
A message has been circulating on WhatsApp and Facebook that the government is going to slash the pension of employees by 30 per cent and terminate it for those above the age of 80.
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India Today Fact Check
No such decision has been taken by the goverment. Press Information Bureau has called it fake.
Many people are in panic about job loss and salary cuts as they fear that the economy will face the worst possible downturn due to the ongoing nationwide lockdown. This panic has not spared the pensioners.
A message has been circulating on WhatsApp and Facebook that the government is going to slash the pension of employees by 30 per cent and terminate it for those above the age of 80.
As per the viral claim, this is in order to divert funds towards managing health services and tackle the adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
In support of their claim, some netizens are also forwarding a news article of "Rediff" published on April 6, 2020, with a headline saying: "Govt may slash pension to employees to by 30%".
India Today has found that this viral claim is misleading. No such notification or government order has been issued yet saying pension of employees will be slashed. The Press Information Bureau of the Government of India has called this viral message "fake".
The archived version of the post is saved here. (http://archive.today/qkmpo
Several Facebook users have posted similar content along with the "Rediff" article.
The Rediff article's archive version can be seen here.
As per the article, "there is a serious thinking among the political leadership to cut by 30 per cent the pension paid by the government across the board -- from the President of India to the humble office assistant (peon)."
The entire article has neither quoted any government official nor it has mentioned the source of this information. In the last sentence, it says that the government is likely to take the decision next week.
Even ten days after the Rediff article was published, we have not found any credible news, information or government notification to this effect.
On April 6, 2020, the Union cabinet had decided on 30 per cent salary cuts for the Members of Parliament and MPLAD funds were suspended for two years. This was reported in the media.
"PIB FactCheck", which is meant to debunk misinformation regarding government schemes and policies, has said that the claim that "Government may reduce employees' pension by 30 per cent and terminate it for those above the age of 80, in the context of Covid-19, is FAKE".
Presently, 16 million people in India are entitled to get pension and retirement benefits. As per the statics, by "Statista", at the end of fiscal year 2018, the budgeted revenue expenditure on pension and other retirement benefits of India's central and state governments amounted to more than four trillion rupees.
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