LAHORE, Dec 1: Closure of 10 zonal and eight regional offices of the Employees Old Age Benefit Institution on Dec 31 is likely to create immense problems for hundreds of thousands of former employees of private or semi-government institutions or their widows.

Though the fate of nearly 400 officials of these offices has not been decided so far, they are fearing that they would be rendered jobless one way or the other after the implementation of the decision.

At present, around 350,000 former employees of the private or semi-government institutions or their widows are benefiting from the scheme started by the government of the late Mr Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

The decision to close the offices was taken by the EOBI’s board of trustees around a week ago, sending a wave of concern among the pensioners or their widows and the officials working in the zonal or regional offices.

According to the officials, the authorities at the zonal offices facing closure were covering the entire Pakistan, providing assistance to the recipients close to their homes. They would most probably be replaced by two offices likely to be established in Karachi and Islamabad.

If established, the Karachi office would cover Sindh and Balochistan and the Islamabad office Punjab and the NWFP.

The zonal offices were serving as an appellate authority for hearing the pension-related disputes of the employees with their institutions or the regional offices in their nearby cities. But after the closure of the offices they would have to travel either to Karachi or Islamabad for the purpose.

“Is it possible for an aged person of Rahim Yar Khan or Quetta to file an appeal in Islamabad or Karachi? And if he does so he would have to travel thrice to the place for having a decision,” an official said.

The regional offices collect contributions from the institutions and then disburse those among the eligible persons.

Officials said the eight regional offices were being closed down under the pretext that they were not generating enough revenue. “These offices are meant to serve the people and not to earn profit,” they said.