Over 16,000 Kerala government employees to retire today; Rs 9000 crore burden on treasury

As 16,000 Kerala government employees are set to retire on Friday (May 31), the state government has to find Rs 9000 crore for retirement benefits. The state has been in overdraft since earlier this month.

Thiruvananthapuram: Over 16,000 government employees are scheduled to retire in the state on Friday (May 31). Last year, the number of retirees on May 31 stood at 11,800. This date is significant due to the historical practice in Kerala of registering May 31 as the date of birth when enrolling in school, which was common before the mandatory requirement of a birth certificate.

Amid a severe economic crisis, Kerala's state finance department must find Rs 9,000 crore for the collective retirement benefits of employees this month. Despite rumors of a potential increase in the pension age, the government has not confirmed any changes. Additionally, Kerala has expressed concern to the Centre over the non-determination of the loan limit for the first quarter of the financial year.

The state has been in overdraft since earlier this month, facing a financial crunch. Although the budget announced that pension payments for the respective month would begin from the current financial year, this action has yet to commence.

Fortunately, not everyone withdraws their funds at once, and many prefer to reinvest their money in the treasury. About half of the retirees are teachers. Today, 15 people, including five special secretaries, will resign from the secretariat. Approximately 800 people are leaving the police force, and around 700 drivers and conductors will retire from KSRTC, with plans to temporarily re-employ drivers. Additionally, 1,010 employees are retiring from KSEB. In all departments, retirees will be replaced by lower-ranking staff, but replacements will not happen quickly everywhere due to significant delays in reporting vacancies to the PSC. Reorganization is also being considered to reduce the number of employees in some departments.