Deadline for exercising option under Unified Pension Scheme extended
The Finance Ministry on Monday (June 23, 2025) extended the cut-off date for exercising options under the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) by three months till September 30.
Earlier, eligible government employees, retirees, and spouses of deceased retirees were given three-month time up to June 30 to exercise their option under the scheme.
In view of the representations received from various stakeholders requesting an extension, the Centre has decided to extend the cut-off date for exercising the option for UPS by three months till September 2025, the Finance Ministry said.
The UPS is applicable to the Central government employees who are covered under the National Pension System (NPS) and who choose this option under the NPS, which came into effect on January 1, 2004. The option to choose between the UPS and the NPS can be exercised by 23 lakh government employees .
On August 24, 2024, the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the UPS.
Under the old pension scheme, which ended in January 2004, employees got 50% of their last drawn basic pay as pension.
Unlike the OPS, the UPS is contributory in nature, wherein employees will be required to contribute 10% of their basic salary and dearness allowance while the employer's contribution (the central government) will be 18.5%.
However, the eventual payout depends on the market returns on that corpus, mostly invested in government debt.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
36 minutes ago
- Time of India
Private sector to drive skills training at 1,000 upgraded ITIs
The private sector will take the lead in imparting skills training to two million youths over a five year period through its own curriculum, which will be developed as per industry requirements, in a major shift in skills training in the country. The skill development and entrepreneurship ministry will set up industry-led special purpose vehicles to drive skills training at the 1,000 industrial training institutes (ITIs) which are being upgraded, said officials. A strict multi-layered monitoring mechanism will be put in place to assess the progress at each ITI , they said. While the Centre will continue to fund half the cost, or Rs 30,000 crore, over the next five years, it will step back from day-to-day operations and management of these ITIs, which will be run jointly by the states and the private sector, a senior government official told ET. 'The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship plans to give financial and managerial autonomy to the private sector to manage them while states will be responsible for identifying industrial clusters for development of these ITIs and for monitoring,' said the official, who did not wish to be identified. Besides, the industry will be responsible for admission, training and placement of candidates in the respective sectors. An escrow account will be created for funding the skills training with contribution from the Centre, states and industry in the 3:2:1 ratio. According to the official, the industry is expected to devise a strategic investment plan for each ITI which will be evaluated and approved by the state committee and the Centre before the skills training is launched. The ministry plans to hire an agency to quarterly monitor progress on skills training based on the learning outcome management system, followed by annual or biannual assessment by the states to ensure desired outcomes are achieved. The Union cabinet had in May approved the Rs 60,000 crore national scheme for ITI upgradation. The scheme, announced in the budget for 2024-25, will see the states contributing Rs 20,000 crore and industry contributing Rs 10,000 crore, with the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank equally co-financing to the extent of half the central share. India has 14,615 ITIs across the country, with 1.44 million candidates enrolled.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Only a small proportion of central government staff opts for UPS, deadline extended by 3 months
Unified Pension Scheme NEW DELHI: After a campaign for assured pension, there is only a small proportion of central govt employees who have opted for the Unified Pension Scheme , offering assured 50 per cent pension, with several seeking further clarifications to exercise the one-time option. As a result, govt has extended the June-end deadline by three months. Employees want to be absolutely sure about the terms of the agreement before deciding to switch to UPS. A concern for employees who joined national pension system from 2004 is the lack of clarity on death benefits. While an assurance was given last week, there are still a few issues that are to be resolved. Under the UPS, while an employee will contribute 10 per cent of his or her salary towards pension, a matching contribution will be made by the Centre, which was 14 per cent under NPS. Under the new scheme, apart from the 10 per cent pension payment, another 8.5 per cent contribution is to be made by the Centre which will not reflect in the balance of the subscriber's account. While most employees understand the change, there are some who believe that the payout may be lower. Further, some of the all India service officers want to know about the difference in contribution between the Centre and states, which don't have a scheme yet. An IAS, IPS or Indian Forest Service officer spends time in the state with some of them also opting for central deputation. While the rules are quite clear, some of the officers have raised doubts. Meanwhile, fund managers, who have been asked to conduct outreach programmes, are smelling a rat and allege that some private players are sowing doubts as they stand to lose out on the annuity business under UPS. Employees now have time to exercise the switching option up to the end of September. The option can be exercised by 23 lakh government employees.
New Indian Express
2 hours ago
- New Indian Express
EPS asks Centre to support Tamil Nadu mango farmers
CHENNAI: Welcoming the union government's decision to support Karnataka mango farmers under the Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS), AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to extend a similar relief to Tamil Nadu mango farmers who have been facing hardships due to fall in remunerative price for mangoes this year. In a statement, Palaniswami said, 'Monetary compensation under the PDPS scheme would be highly beneficial to the mango farmers of Tamil Nadu, as they have suffered significant losses, since mango is a seasonal crop cultivated only once a year.' Palaniswami said the Centre, under the PDPS, has agreed to compensate the farmers up to 2.5 lakh tonnes of Totapuri mangoes to offset massive losses. He also criticised the DMK government for failing to redress the grievances of mango farmers in the state. Accusing the government of remaining a 'mute spectator' to the issue, PMK 'president' Anbumani Ramadoss said Karnataka and AP governments have taken sincere steps to safeguard their farmers. Recently, the state government announced that after June 20, the mango pulp producing companies would procure the fruits at a remunerative price. But four days have passed since, the companies did not start procuring mangoes, he said, 'At least, the government should provide Rs 4,000/tonne as incentive.'
