Vikrant Shekhawat : Aug 25, 2024, 08:44 AM
Unified Pension Scheme: The central government has announced a new pension scheme, the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), for its 23 lakh employees. The scheme will come into effect from April 1, 2025 and under this, a provision has been made to give fixed pension to government employees after retirement. The objective of this scheme is to provide financial security to central employees and provide them better options in the field of pension.What is Unified Pension Scheme (UPS)?Under the Unified Pension Scheme, central employees will receive 50 percent of their average basic salary of the last 12 months as pension after retirement. For this, employees have to serve a minimum of 25 years. If the service period of an employee is more than 10 years, he will get proportionate pension. Additionally, employees will also be guaranteed a minimum pension of at least Rs 10,000 per month under this scheme.Who can take advantage of UPS?According to the scheme, employees who have retired or are currently working under the National Pension System (NPS) since 2004 can opt for UPS. Employees will get the option to choose either NPS or UPS.Will state government employees also get the benefit?It will depend on the state government. If the state government wants, it can make arrangements to give pension to its employees under UPS.What is the difference between UPS and NPS?The traditional National Pension System (NPS) had no provision for fixed pension and was entirely based on stock market returns, which caused dissatisfaction among employees. In contrast, UPS has a provision to give fixed pension like the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Under UPS, an average of 50% of the basic salary of the 12 months before retirement will be given as pension.What will be the benefits of UPS to central employees?Under UPS, employees will get a fixed pension. If an employee dies suddenly, his family will get 60% of his pension. Apart from this, if someone's service period is less than 10 years, he will still get a minimum pension of Rs 10,000. The pension will be increased from time to time in view of the inflation situation and DA (dearness allowance) will be based on the All India Consumer Price Index for Industrial Workers.How much interest will be received on shifting from NPS to UPS?Central employees who have retired under NPS and shift to UPS will get interest on their outstanding amount. This interest will be given at the rate of PPF (Public Provident Fund).Financial impact of UPSIn NPS, employees have to contribute 10% of their salary for pension, while the government contributes 14%. The government's contribution to UPS will increase to 18.5%, which will not put any additional burden on the employees. However, this change will put an additional burden of Rs 6250 crore on the government in the first year.This new scheme of the Central Government is an important step for the central employees, which will ensure them financial security and satisfactory pension provision. Through UPS, the government has paved a way which will further strengthen the post-retirement security of the employees.
देश की प्रगति के लिए कठिन परिश्रम करने वाले सभी सरकारी कर्मचारियों पर हमें गर्व है। यूनिफाइड पेंशन स्कीम (UPS) इन कर्मचारियों की गरिमा और आर्थिक सुरक्षा को सुनिश्चित करने वाली है। यह कदम उनके कल्याण और सुरक्षित भविष्य के लिए हमारी सरकार की प्रतिबद्धता को दर्शाता है।…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 24, 2024