CHENNAI: Chief Minister MK Stalin is set to make an official announcement on Saturday on the pension scheme, amid mounting demands from government employees and teachers’ unions for the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme in place of the Contributory Pension Scheme.

After a meeting with ministers EV Velu and Thangam Thennarasu, coordinators of JACTTO-GEO said they would decide their next course of action after the chief minister’s announcement. They added that the decision would determine whether the unions would proceed with an indefinite strike.

The umbrella organisation of government staff and teachers has called for an indefinite strike across the State from January 6, a move that could disrupt normal government functioning and school operations. In response, the State government has decided to hold talks with employees’ unions, including JACTTO-GEO.

After four rounds of talks with the ministers, they informed us that the chief minister would announce positive news on Saturday, said K Venkatesan, coordinator of JACTTO-GEO. Therefore, we have decided to wait and watch for the announcement. If the Old Pension Scheme is implemented, it will not only benefit serving employees but also around 48,000 retired staff and teachers who are currently under the Contributory Pension Scheme.

JACTTO-GEO had earlier announced an indefinite strike from January 6, with a charter of 10 demands, including the withdrawal of the Contributory Pension Scheme and the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme. Subsequently, the government constituted a three-member committee comprising ministers Velu, Thennarasu and Anbil Mahesh to hold discussions with the unions.

After talks with the Group of Ministers failed on December 22, employees’ and teachers’ associations decided to go ahead with the protest as planned.

Following this, a three-member Pension Committee studied the Old Pension Scheme, the Contributory Pension Scheme and the Unified Pension Scheme, and submitted its report to the State government on December 30, recommending a suitable pension model for government employees.