“We will continue our strike until the Chief Minister (Devendra Fadnavis) gives us in writing that our demands will be met,” added Shinde.Hundreds of state government employees from various departments joined a strike at Pune’s Central Building on Tuesday. Under the banner of Rajya Sarkari Karmachari Madhyavanti Sangathna, striking workers demanded implementing the Old Pension Scheme among other things.In Pune, the protesters were led by retired government employee Maruti Shinde, Pune District President of the organisation. He told The Indian Express, “Our main demand is that the Revised National Pension Scheme 2024 that we achieved through protests has not been implemented. Further, class 4 contractual employees should also be regularised. We should also get cashless health benefits. We are protesting for various such demands.”“We will continue our strike until the Chief Minister (Devendra Fadnavis) gives us in writing that our demands will be met,” added Shinde.A Pune RTO official said, “All working staff, excluding the officers, have participated in the indefinite strike beginning today. Main demands include increasing the retirement age limit from 58 to 60, and applying the Old Pension Scheme , among others.”RTO operations impactedSpeaking to the Indian Express, Pune Deputy RTO Sandip Khadse said, “We have called up around 15 ground executive officers to manage the administrative work as around 60 administrative staff have been involved in the strike. The routine operations will be affected till the staff joins back.”Nilesh Dhawale, an agent working at Pune RTO, said, “For vehicle transfers, Registration Certificate (RC) duplication, and cancellation of hypothecation, that is to remove a lender’s charge from a vehicle’s RC, the owner needs to present in person for signature. For these services, several of them travelled today to the Pune RTO office from across the city, like Chandan Nagar, Kharadi, Kothrud, and other parts, while taking a leave, but had to return.”“Some citizens come for general enquiries about required documents; they were also not informed about the strike, so over 100 such individuals had to return without any help today,” added Dhawale.Story continues below this adVishwa Inarkar, another RTO agent, echoed similar inconvenience caused to learner licence applicants. “In the morning, the tests for new learning license applicants were conducted, but were closed in the afternoon. If the strike continues for long, then the administrative work in the department is expected to be severely hampered, causing significant inconvenience to citizens,” Inarkar said.Nurses support strikeAround one lakh nurses at govt run hospitals are currently supporting the strike across the state. Sumitra Tote, state secretary of Maharashtra State Nurses Association said that they were protesting by wearing black ribbons (badges) at work. However the association has threatened to join the strike after three days if no decision is taken by the government on their demands.In March 2023, then CM Eknath Shinde had appointed a three-member committee to study the question of the Old Pension Scheme. In 2024, the Maharashtra government had announced that it had accepted a revised National Pension Scheme (NPS). Under this scheme, employees will have the option to get a pension of 50 per cent based on their last drawn salary and Dearness Allowance (DA) and a family pension of 60 per cent of their pension and DA. Protestors say that the Maharashtra government is dragging its feet over implementation of this scheme, causing loss to employees retired after March 1, 2024.(With inputs from Anuradha Mascarenhas) Soham Shah is a Correspondent with The Indian Express, based in Pune. A journalism graduate with a background in fact-checking, he brings a meticulous and research-oriented approach to his current reporting. Professional Background Role: Correspondent coverig education and city affairs in Pune. Specialization: His primary beat is education, but he also maintains a strong focus on civic issues, public health, human rights, and state politics. Key Strength: Soham focuses on data-driven reporting on school and college education, government reports, and public infrastructure. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) His late 2025 work highlights a transition from education-centric reporting to hard-hitting investigative and human-rights stories: 1. Investigations & Governance "Express Impact: Mother's name now a must to download birth certificate from PMC site" (Dec 20, 2025): Reporting on a significant policy change by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) following his earlier reports on gender inclusivity in administrative documents. "44-Acre Mahar Land Controversy: In June, Pune official sought land eviction at Pawar son firm behest" (Nov 9, 2025): An investigative piece on real estate irregularities involving high-profile political families. 2. Education & Campus Life Faculty crisis at SPPU hits research, admin work: 62% of govt-sanctioned posts vacant, over 75% in many depts (Sept 12, 2025): An investigative piece on professor vacancies at Savitribai Phule Pune University. "Maharashtra’s controversial third language policy: Why National Curriculum Framework recommends a third language from Class 6" (July 2): This detailed piece unpacks reasons behind why the state's move to introduce a third language from class 1 was controversial. "Decline in number of schools, teachers in Maharashtra but student enrolment up: Report" (Jan 2025): Analyzing discrepancies in the state's education data despite rising student numbers. 3. Human Rights & Social Issues "Aanchal Mamidawar was brave after her family killed her boyfriend" (Dec 17, 2025): A deeply personal and hard-hitting opinion piece/column on the "crime of love" and honor killings in modern India. "'People disrespect the disabled': Meet the man who has become face of racist attacks on Indians" (Nov 29, 2025): A profile of a Pune resident with severe physical deformities who became the target of global online harassment, highlighting issues of disability and cyber-bullying. Signature Style Soham is known for his civil-liberties lens. His reporting frequently champions the rights of the marginalized—whether it's students fighting for campus democracy, victims of regressive social practices, or residents struggling with crumbling urban infrastructure (as seen in his "Breathless Pune" contributions). He is adept at linking hyper-local Pune issues to larger national conversations about law and liberty. X (Twitter): @SohamShah07 ... Read MoreShubham Kurale is a journalist based in Pune and has studied journalism at the Ranade Institute. He primarily reports on transport and is interested in covering civic issues, sports, gig workers, environmental issues, and queer issues. X:@ShubhamKurale1 ... Read MoreClick here to join Express Pune WhatsApp channel and get a curated list of our stories© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:pune