78569 BSNL officers and employees will be leaving their dear institution taking Voluntary retirement under VRS by 31st January 2020. Thus BSNL will lose a large number of employees who have steadfastly worked for long years and served the people. In addition, there will be some more employees who will be retiring on superannuation now.

Probably this will be the VRS, in which such a large number of employees have opted. It will seem that they have opted voluntarily, out of their own willingness and pleasure. But such is not the case. An examination of the various issues will give a different picture. It was one of most cunning plot, planned and implemented by the government and BSNL to send workers out of the company.

All these employees joined the Posts and Telegraphs Department / Department of Telecommunications (DOT) with great hopes for a better job, good remuneration and service conditions. A large number have joined as Reserve trained Pool (RTP), which was a scheme initiated at the time of Minister C.M.Stephen. The intention of the scheme was engaging trained personnel on hourly basis as reserve staff paying them a pittance of rupees. There was no intention to give them permanent job. They were to be kept as reserve trained pool. But once they joined, they understood that there is a strong Federation, NFPTE, and its affiliated Unions to take up their issues and organise struggle for them. Within a few years, through sustained struggles, all these comrades were regularised. It was a great achievement. Once they were regularised, they hoped that they will be able to continue their full term and retire on superannuation. The retirement age was increased from 58 to 60 by 1996. This means two more years of service.

Despite strong agitation and strike by the entire workers, Telecom Services were corporatised in to BSNL. The recognised federations, NFTE,FNTO and BTEF agreed for corporatisation after obtaining certain assurances. Unions like E.III(N), T.III etc. resisted till the last, well knowing that corporatisation is the first step towards privatisation.

But once BSNL was constituted, the above unions took up on themselves to ensure that the BSNL workers get justice and that BSNL is improved and strengthened. The conversion from CDA pay scales to IDA wef 01-10-2000 benefitted the entire employees, including officers. The role of BSNLEU in this was appreciated by all. BSNLEU became the sole recognised union in 2004 getting more than 50% of votes in the II Membership verification. BSNL strengthened and with an annual revenue of Rs.40,000 crore and a profit of an average of Rs. 6,000 crore became one of the biggest PSUs in the country. Govt. was worried that the private companies will be backtracked. It wanted to introduce VRS for 1 lakh workers, disinvestment of about 10% to 20% shares, unbundle the valuable copper cables spread all over India etc. to ensure that the company is weakened and is made ready for privatisation. The VRS draft Scheme was circulated.

BSNLEU, the recognised union, took initiative and brought all the unions under the Forum/Joint Forum and fought against these attacks. It clearly understood that VRS is neither beneficial to the company nor the workers. Massive propaganda was done. Many strikes and struggles were organised. 20th April 2010 strike was spectacular. The government was compelled to discuss and agree that there will be no VRS, no disinvestment, no unbundling of copper cables etc. etc. It was also agreed that wage revision w.e.f. 2007 will be finalised and that Pension Revision will be taken with the cabinet. Thus the govt could not even finalise the VRS and not a single official was sent out through VRS. It was a great victory against the govt’s anti-worker policy.

The struggle was not over. Pay Revision for executives was ordered as per recommendations of the II Pay Revision Committee. But BSNL took a tough stand on the pay revision of the non-executives. It took about three years to finalise the wage revision for employees and many agitations had to be organised. But at last the wage agreement was reached with 30% fitment, the highest at that time. Four Promotion Scheme (NEPP) was also got signed. Till that time non-executives were eligible for one or two promotions. Certain cadres had no promotion at all. The value of increments were increased. The telecom employees never in their life got such a better pay revision. This was done by BSNLEU through continuous struggles. Of course our allies were also there. The yearly wage bill increased from Rs. 10,000 crore to Rs. 14,000 crore because of the Pay/Wage revision.

Almost every year since 2004, there has been strikes, either done or withdrawn after settlement. Many of these struggles were for better service and allotment of spectrum etc.

Modi govt. is hell bound on favouring Reliance Jio, the new entrant owned by Mukesh Ambani, and wanted BSNL to be closed or privatised. But as long as the workers who fought continuously are there, it was not possible. A well planned attack was started on BSNL and its workers. 4G spectrum was denied to BSNL even after all others were given the same. BSNL was not allowed to purchase required equipment. All funds available with BSNL was taken over by DOT on one pretext or other. BSNL punged in to loss.

Next came the non-payment of wages to contract workers for about 10 months. The workers wages were delayed in many months. Govt and media always presented BSNL as a loss making company which can not be revived and has to be closed or privatised. The wage bill of the company was made a big issue. Propaganda was made that the retirement age will be reduced to 58 from the present 60. Insecurity was created in the minds of the employees. Due to the agitations of the AUAB, govt was compelled to state that BSNL will not be closed or privatised and that a Revival Plan will be implemented. It included VRS for 80,000 workers, allotment of 4G Spectrum, sovereign guarantee, locan etc. But the main plan was VRS.
In order to compel workers to opt for VRS all tricks were adopted by DOT and BSNL management including threats of transfer, work up to 12 hours etc. etc. And the result was that more than 78,000 employees opted for VRS. There are many gray areas in the VRS, which may create problems in future. But the workers felt so insecure that they opted for VRS.

There are two important issues in the present scenario. One is about the benefits and pension settlement etc of the employees opted for VRS. AIBDPA has already taken up the matter with DOT and the Member (Finance) agreed to our demand that all the retirees should get the pension by end of the month itself. In case, there is any delay, he agreed to pay provisional pension, so that all VRS retirees will get the pension without delay. AIBDPA has also demanded that all the settlements should be done without delay. Now that these workers will be pensioners from February, it becomes the duty of AIBDPA to settle their demands.

As far Revival of BSNL is considered the AUAB has already demanded for early allotment of 4G Spectrum, loan etc.

It is in this situation that the New Year 2020 is arriving. AIBDPA welcomes all the VRS retirees and requests them to become members of AIBDPA. All are pensioners and difference and division of the workers are not there. AIBDPA has got members from those retired from the BSNL Board as also other top officers. It has branches and circles all over the country. It is the biggest Pensioners Association in the Central govt. employees. It is affiliated to the National Co-ordination Committee of Pensioners (NCCPA) which is headed by Com. Shiv Gopal Mishra (AIRF) and Com. K.K.N.Kutty , both Members of the JCM National Council. AIBDPA is also affiliated to the Trade Union International (Pensioners and retirees) and its General Secretary Com. K.G.Jayaraj is one of the Executive committee Members.

AIBDPA has been formed 10 years back and had organised several agitational programmes for getting 78.2% IDA fixation for pensioners, Pension revision w.e.f. 2017,delinking of pension revision from pay revision etc. and also has presented the major demands of the DOT/BSNL pensioners before the VII CPC. Continuous efforts are being made for the grant of Pension revision.
The new pensioners on VRS can also get assured that their problems will be effectively taken by AIBDPA.

In fact, AIBDPA is in struggle path at present for the Pension Revision, Medical reimbursement, medical allowance etc. The programme includes meeting all M.P.s through out the country and forwarded our Memorandum of demands to the Prime Minister, Dharna on 12th February 2020 all over India and Parliament March on March 12.

AIBDPA is the organisation of the veterans of the struggles. We welcome all the new pensioners to its fold and assure that it will make out all efforts to settle the issues of the new pensioners.

We Wish a Happy and Fruitful New Year to all comrades, friends and wellwishers!

BSNL IS CAPABLE OF RESTORING TO ITS PAST GLORY. IT HAS GOT THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND MAN POWER

The media reports are always mentioning BSNL with adjectives like sick, incipient, loss making etc. with the ill motive of denigrating it and also giving a wrong signal to the public that BSNL is going to be privatised or closed. The government also wants the same, though Communications Minister has some Revival plan.

But is BSNL so sick and incipient? No sir, it is still vibrant, got good infrastructure, committed employees and increasing number of mobile subscribers every month. Let us look in to the details:( as on 31-03-2019)

ASSETS:

12.68 crore subscribers – 11.56 crore Mobile 1.11 crore landline.( 3.94 crore rural including landline and GSM)
2.15 crore Broadband customers, including ADSL, FTTH, Wi-MAX, Wi-Fi etc.
32,760 Telephone Exchanges – 8,641 urban and 24,029 rural.
8.49 lakh Route Kms of OFC network
2,548 Microwave Route Kms and 95 Satellite Earth Stations
67,618 Towers.
GSM BTS – 1,46,065, including rural, urban (2G, 3G)
3G coverage in 6,383 cities.
1,32,229 villages connectivity
10.58% Market Share of both GSM & Landline combined.(4th position after Vodafone-Idea, Bharti Airtel and reliance Jio)

Number of employees 1,66,974
Reduction of employees in 2018-19 = 16,548

Approximate land and building will be worth several lakhs of crores of rupees
Staff Quarters in all important centres.
7 Telecom Factories in W.Bengal, M.P., Chhattisgarh and Mumbai.
2 Advanced Training centres at Ghaziabad and Jabalpur.
About 20 RTTCs and CTTCs (Training centres)

No other institution in India has got so much land and building assets, except Railways.

BSNL has been increasing its mobile connections every month, when all other telcos except Reliance Jio is losing customers.

What is the Revenue, Expenditure, Loss? Depreciation
2013- 14 Rs. 27,996 cr. 34,930 cr. Rs. 7020 cr. Rs. 6023cr
2014-15 Rs. 28,645 cr. 37,292 cr Rs. 8234 cr. Rs. 8,817cr
2015-16 Rs. 32,411 cr 37,270 cr. Rs. 4859 cr. Rs 7,206cr
2016-17 Rs. 31,533 cr 36,327 cr. Rs. 4,793 cr Rs. 6330cr
2017-18 Rs. 25,071 cr. 33,808 cr. Rs. 7993 cr Rs. 5832cr
The loss is mainly due to the amount of depreciation counted in the expenditure. This is not an actual expenditure, but the % of depreciation calculated for the building and other assets. If the depreciation is removed and only the actual expenditure is taken, the loss is minimal.

The wage bill has not increased, but was almost static, since almost 10,000 to 17,000 employees were retiring every year without substitute. The number of staff in 2000 was 3.5 lakhs which at present is only 1.6 lakhs.

The main reason for the loss is due to non- allotment of 4G Spectrum, non-refund of about Rs.14,000 crores by the DOT/Government including increased pension contribution taken from BSNL and not honouring the assurances on financial viability by the government at the time of corporatisation in 2000.

The debt of BSNL is about Rs. 14,000 crore, while that of each of the private telcos are more than Rs. one lakh crore. The predatory pricing and violation of rules by Reliance Jio is another reason for loss of all the companies.

This government’s policy is to privatise/close all the PSUs one after another as recommended by NITI Ayog. Privatisation or closure of a profitable PSU will naturally be questioned by the people, Hence BSNL has to be made loss making before privatisation/Closure. VRS is also another weapon to destroy the services and this is what the govt want to implement in BSNL. This has to be fought and defeated.

The public and the customers are not fully aware that the closure/privatisation of BSNL and MTNL will result in increased rent, charges etc. for telephone services. Just like the price of the petrol nowadays, the telephone charges also will increase almost daily. It will adversely affect all the 120 crore subscribers of all the telcos.

The workers also have to improve the services to the maximum possible, which will ensure public support for the PSU. BSNL employees are getting comparatively good wages and the work should be better. There are many genuine and fully justified demands of the workers including wage revision etc. and struggle has to take place for those. But immediate issue is the survival of BSNL and maximum effort form the part of the workers is very important.

As shown above BSNL is neither weak nor to be written off. Once the 7th biggest telecom company in the world, it can come back again to the glorious position that it held earlier.

We seek full support of the people in making BSNL strong and an efficient organisation to give the best service to the customers.