Picture : ANI / X
In a bonanza to 23 lakh central government employees, the Union Cabinet has approved an assured pension of 50 per cent of salary for those who joined the service after January 1, 2004, under the National Pension System (NPS).
Fulfilling long pending demands of government employees ahead of assembly elections in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir, the Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), which assures guaranteed pension.
Aiming to provide assured pension, family pension and assured minimum pension to government employees.
“Today the Union Cabinet has approved Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) for government employees providing for the assured pension…50% assured pension is the first pillar of the scheme…second pillar will be assured family pension…About 23 lakh employees of the central government would benefit from the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS)…There will be an option for the employees to opt between NPS and UPS…” Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
The Unified Pension Scheme will be applicable from April 1, 2025. Rs 6250 crore will be the cost of implementing the scheme in the first year. UPS will apply to all those retired under the NPS from 2004.
On Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), Congress leader Rashid Alvi told ANI, ” The job govt should have done much earlier, they are doing it now out of pressure. The whole opposition has been saying that govt must make some decision regarding pension…retired employees should get pension based on their salary (before retirement), not just 50% (of their salary) but they should get 100% (of their salary)…a central govt employee retires after working for the country and this is what you are announcing for such people…they are creating confusion…”
