Shamli Pensioners Protest, Demand Offline Medical Reimbursement Option Alongside Online System

The Shamli district branch of the Retired Employees and Pensioners Association, Uttar Pradesh, held a protest and submitted a memorandum demanding that medical reimbursement bills be accepted offline along with the existing online system.

The protest was organised against the process for medical reimbursement claims of serving and retired government employees being made more complicated in the name of simplification. The association described the change as an injustice to elderly pensioners and submitted a memorandum addressed to the Chief Minister to administrative officials.

As part of its campaign, the association organised a large sit-in protest in the district. Speakers at the protest said that serious problems had arisen for pensioners regarding treatment and the payment of medical bills after the Medical Department issued a government order on 09 September 2026.

The organisation’s main demand is that pensioners should be given both online and offline options for submitting their medical reimbursement bills. The association said that most pensioners are not computer-friendly, and that their ‘E&RPS’ codes are also not recorded on the portal.

According to the association, the system for issuing online PPOs began after 2016. Because of this, data from before that period is not available online. The organisation said this has created difficulties for pensioners who need to submit claims and complete the required process through the portal.

The association has demanded that the offline option, which was available earlier, must remain open along with the online system until the entire process becomes easy and accessible. It said pensioners should not be forced to depend only on the online process while practical difficulties continue.

Treatment on the verge of stopping, bills becoming time-barred

The memorandum stated that the Medical Department suddenly stopped accepting offline bills from 01 October 2026. The association said that payments for the bills of several pensioners had consequently stopped, and their treatment had also come to a halt.

It further stated that many medical bills were becoming time-barred, or expired, because of the delay in processing and payment. The association said the continued problems were causing hardship to pensioners who depend on the reimbursement process for the payment of their medical expenses.

Warning of Assembly protest

During the sit-in protest, the association warned that a large demonstration would be held outside the Assembly on the call of the provincial organisation if the government did not soon issue an order allowing offline medical bills to be accepted.

The association said thousands of pensioners would take part in that proposed protest. Office-bearers of the organisation and a large number of senior citizens were present at the demonstration.