As the stalemate over the release of GP fund payments does not head to any dead end, majority of the employees of the Jammu & Kashmir Government in peak marriage season this time find themselves at the receiving end.
The unending unprecedented delay in release of GP (General Provident) Fund payments has brought the employees of Jammu & Kashmir Government under increasing financial stress as experiences of decades show that employees apply for release of GP Fund dues only to meet health emergencies, marriage ceremonies and career building of their children. While financial stress under which the employees are reeling due to delays in release of GP fund payments is further complicating their pressing health and family issues day after day and month after month since March this year, the settlement of pending GP fund payment cases are piling up in the finance department. As the stalemate over the release of GP fund payments does not head to any dead end, majority of the employees of the Jammu & Kashmir Government in peak marriage season this time find themselves at the receiving end. While the irrefutable fact is that Government Employees apply for release of General Provident Fund (GP Fund) dues only under pressing situations developing either due to marriages of their children or admissions of their wards in private missionary schools or professional colleges, the unprecedented delay in their General Provident Fund payments is forcing them to inevitably take loans in lacs from banks and defer indefinitely the marriages of their children besides which their children even miss the golden opportunities of admissions in professional colleges within and outside Jammu & Kashmir. While the irrefutable fact is that the General Provident Fund (GP Fund) is the amount deducted by Jammu & Kashmir Government from the hard earned salaries of it’s pre-2010 employees which if deposited in Banks would be disbursed to them with huge interests in a short span of few days, the Government by delaying release of GP fund payments to employees for months together is virtually putting them under tremendous psychological, mental and physical stress.
“While the Government employees invest major part of their hard earned salaries for spending them on health emergencies besides marriages and career building of their children, they are unfortunately going through shocks and sufferings at the age when they can’t afford to take loans from banks on higher interest rates for huge spending on health emergencies besides marriages and career building of their children”.
Though all the pre-2010 Government employees have invested almost half of their salaries in their General Provident Fund (GP Fund) accounts with the hope that the amounts likely to be paid back to them on requisitions with the interests more than what banks pay on fixed deposits could be utilised by them on health emergencies besides marriages and career building of their children but the Government by going on denial and deferment modes is contributing to their difficulties instead of coming to their rescue in pressing circumstances. While the Government employees invest major part of their hard earned salaries for spending them on health emergencies besides marriages and career building of their children, they are unfortunately going through shocks and sufferings at the age when they can’t afford to take loans from banks on higher interest rates for huge spending on health emergencies besides marriages and career building of their children.

