The government has backed down on the proposal to increase the mandatory retirement age for civil servants in the Federal Civil Service Bill.
At a meeting of the National Assembly’s Committee for Legislation Management held on Tuesday, Minister for Federal Affairs and General Administration Bhagawati Neupane said that the government had agreed to move forward in line with the provision already passed by the House of Representatives.
In Monday’s meeting, she had proposed setting the retirement age for civil servants at 59 years in the fiscal year the act comes into force. Lawmakers from opposition parties had objected to the proposal.
Following this, Minister Neupane clarified that she had no personal interest in the bill and proposed continuing the tradition of moving forward with consensus. Both the House of Representatives and the Committee for Legislation Management had earlier agreed that the retirement age for civil servants would be 58 years in the fiscal year the bill becomes law. Lawmakers in the committee had objected to the minister’s proposal, accusing her of attempting to overturn the agreed provision.
“We couldn't reach a conclusion on the retirement age until yesterday. I requested to take it easily. I don't do anything for personal gain. I don't do anything for anyone's undue benefit. We need the support of employees. The government must pay attention to boosting their morale,” she said. “This was thought of in terms of how all employees can benefit. I had committed that the bill would be passed by both Houses in this session. I am still committed. This bill is important. There is no personal interest in the views I expressed. There is a tradition of proceeding with consensus; let's not break it. Let's proceed according to the provision passed by the House of Representatives.”
With the minister herself backing down on her proposal, civil servants will now retire at the age of 58 in the current fiscal year.
The Federal Civil Service Bill is scheduled to be tabled in the National Assembly on Tuesday and is expected to be passed the same day. Mahesh Bartaula, chief whip of the CPN-UML, said that preparations are underway to endorse it in the House of Representatives on September 4.
Earlier, the House of Representatives had reached an agreement on the bill after extensive debates and discussions.
The government had introduced the bill proposing 60 years as the mandatory retirement age for civil servants.
After deliberations in the House of Representatives, consensus was reached to implement the retirement age provision in phases: civil servants would retire at 58 in the fiscal year the act comes into effect, at 59 the following year, and at 60 from the third year onward. The National Assembly’s Committee for Legislation Management has also agreed to retain this provision.
