Himachal govt committed to protect interests of HRTC staff, pensioners: Deputy CM

The Himachal Pradesh government has released a significant amount of money to settle pending pensions, arrears, leave encashment, and other financial dues of Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) employees and pensioners, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said on Saturday.

He also said the state government is committed to protect the interests of the HRTC staff and pensioners. The statement came a day after the state government pensioners staged demonstrations at almost all district headquarters to press their demands for release of pending instalments of dearness allowance (DA) and arrears of revised pay and pension to the employees who superannuated after January 2016.

Addressing a press conference here, the deputy chief minister said arrears of Rs 23 crore have been released to 647 pensioners over the age of 75. These arrears were announced in 2022 and were due from January 1, 2016.

Additionally, an amount of Rs 29.47 crore has been released for 222 retired employees whose pensions were pending since April 2024. This includes commutation amounts (pensioners receive a part of their pension in advance and their monthly pension is reduced accordingly), he added.

Agnihotri said Rs 23 crore has been released for the payment of pensions for September 2025. Additionally, Rs 33 crore will be released this month for leave encashment and Rs 33 crore for death-cum-retirement gratuity.

He said the state government is ensuring that no pensioner or employee has to wait for their dues.

The HRTC is a major public service provider in the state, and the government is continuously taking concrete steps to strengthen the corporation, he added.