Cooperative loans for KSRTC pension

Thiruvananthapuram: The KSRTC management on Friday handed over to the cooperative department, the district wise list of pensioners as part of efforts to ensure pension through cooperative banks. The government has agreed to take a loan from a consortium of primary cooperative banks under the aegis of the state cooperative bank to pay the pension arrears of KSRTC. The draft MoU for the same has been finalised. It will be signed soon after; the MoU was approved by the cooperative department.

State Cooperative bank has convened a meeting of primary cooperative banks on Tuesday to discuss modalities of the loan. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had assured the pensioners of the KSRTC that the arrears in pensions would be paid by next Wednesday. Full month pension for December, January and February and part payment for the months of June and September will reach the 38,516 retired in one installment.

KSRTC will get Rs 584 crore to pay pension as the government agreed to stand guarantee for the Rs 605.7 crore loan, including the interest of 10 per cent. The KSRTC has to pay pension arrears of Rs 224 crore. The pensioners have arrears for three months and partially for two months. The cooperative banks would pay Rs 284 crore as first instalment soon. The cooperative bank under each local body that can afford to pay the loan will be entrusted with the disbursal. The rest of the amount was to ensure that pensions are not disrupted till July. Pension and other expenses later will be taken care of by the Rs 3,500 crore loan from the Bank Consortium.