The Fortune 500 company had, in fact, inserted additional incentives when the scheme was underway. One was to include the years of service for those who worked in the Assam Oil Company before it was taken over by IOC in the early eighties. Thus, an IOC staffer keen on the OVSS would be at par with a counterpart who was formerly with the Assam unit as regards the tenure in an organisation.

The other bait offered by IOC was to alter the norms on providing lifelong medical aid to those employees quitting under 50. As per the rules, medicare would be ensured to all staffers who were part of the organisation at the age of 50. Quitting even a month earlier would have meant relinquishing these benefits permanently, a tough decision given the high cost of medical treatment. IOC has now stipulated that even if an employee quits at, say, 46 he will be entitled to medical support for life once he turns 50. Despite these additional incentives, the response has not been as enthusiastic as expected given that the overall monetary benefits were a staggering figure.

Sources say that the marketing division has accounted for more than two-thirds of the applications while it has very disappointing from both pipelines and refineries. Employees of the Assam Oil unit have apparently constituted the balance.

Interestingly, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation plans to introduce a separation scheme on the lines of the one drafted hy IOC. It will be taken up for approval by the board at its next meeting. Similarly, Bharat Petroleum Corporation has also planned an attractive VRS as also IBP, the stand-alone oil marketing company.

IOC's scheme is particularly attractive as it offers an additional monthly benefit which will vary for different age categories, right from 45 to over 58. It will be paid for a period equivalent to the service rendered or till the notional date of superannuation, whichever is earlier.

Those over 58 will be entitled to 105 per cent of their basic pay till they reach the retirement age of 60. Likewise, the group between 54 and 58 years will get 100 per cent of basic pay while the 50-54 category will get 95 per cent of basic pay till they are 60. Employees between 45 and 50 will get 90 per cent of their basic pay for the balance period till they are 60.

IOC has given an option to employees, having liabilities like housing or car loans, to repay these in monthly instalments out of the additional monthly benefit after adjusting the amount of gratuity, leave or leave travel encashed during the previous year. The monthly instalments will be reworked and deducted from the additional monthly benefit.

There has been a substantial hike in the salary levels in all PSUs and today, almost everyone in the junior to senior management cadre gets a basic pay of over Rs 15,000. Typically, the OVSS would be the best bet to anyone in the 50-58 age group. Apart from pocketing a generous package, these people with their skills could immediately join the private sector, which pays more, and put their expertise to good use.

As far as IOC is concerned, the scheme was drafted to help meet its eventual objective of streamlining manpower. To quote a recent internal note: "Consequent to technology upgradation, modernisation, automation and system simplification, considerable manpower is becoming available for deployment. Even after meeting additional requirements for new activities and locations, there are some employees who cannot be redeployed due to either mobility constraints or reluctance on their part for reskilling etc."