Pensions

Flagging concerns over the high concentration of Atal Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers in the minimum slab of Rs 1,000, Financial Services Secretary M Nagaraju called on financial institutions, particularly banks, to nudge individuals toward higher pension slabs as their incomes grow. The flagship social security scheme, APY, has witnessed gross enrolments crossing the 9 crore mark, and in FY26, a record 1.35 crore new subscribers were added. "Amid this remarkable progress, I must call your attention to the critical concern that there is an overwhelming concentration of enrolments in the Rs 1,000 monthly pension slab," he said, while addressing an Atal Pension Yojana Annual Felicitation Programme organised by PFRDA here. "While we celebrate our enrolment numbers, we must ask ourselves: would Rs 1,000 per month provide adequate protection to our subscribers 20 or 30 years from now? This concentration suggests that our counselling at the point of enrolment needs more strengthening. Ou

The Union government has informed the Bombay High Court that Agniveers are not "similarly situated" as regular soldiers and hence, cannot claim parity in pensionary benefits for their next of kin in the event of death in action. In an affidavit filed last week against a petition by the mother of a deceased Agniveer, the Centre argued that the differentiation is constitutionally valid, as the Agnipath scheme is a short-term engagement designed for present-day national security needs. The government filed its affidavit in response to a petition by Jyotibai Naik, mother of Agniveer Murali Naik, who was killed in cross-border shelling in Jammu & Kashmir during Operation Sindoor in May last year, seeking benefits similar to those of regular soldiers. The petition, filed last year through advocates Sandesh More, Hemant Ghadigaonkar and Hitendra Gandh, stated that the Centre's Agnipath scheme creates an "arbitrary" distinction between Agniveers and regular soldiers, and questioned the ...

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The Goa government and the Cochin Port Authority on Thursday signed agreements to onboard onto the Department of Telecommunications' digital platform SAMPANN to streamline the disbursement of pensions. The agreement signing ceremony was presided over by Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in the national capital. Developed, owned, and operated by the Office of the Controller General of Communication Accounts (CGCA), SAMPANN is an end-to-end digital platform designed to cover the entire pension lifecycle. Currently, it enables the direct credit of pensions for about 4.8 lakh telecom pensioners belonging to the DoT, BSNL, MTNL, and VSNL. DoT (Department of Telecommunications) is now offering SAMPANN as a 'Platform as a Service' (PaaS) to other departments, state governments, and Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). Meanwhile, the minister also released a commemorative postage stamp to mark the 75th anniversary of the Postal Training Centre (PTC) located in Saharanpur.

The West Bengal government will pay the pending Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears to serving employees, pensioners and family pensioners in a single instalment instead of the two tranches announced earlier, an official said on Saturday. The decision follows a Supreme Court order in February directing the state government to clear the DA arrears, after which the administration had announced that payments would begin in March. In a partial modification of its March 13 order, the state government has now decided to release the entire arrears for the period from January 2016 to December 2019 by March 31, the official said.

The court's one-time relief ensures long-term financial security for officers who were denied permanent commission

Several former top brass of Coal India Ltd (CIL), its subsidiaries and Singareni Collieries Company Ltd have sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention to revise retired employees' pension, pointing out that it "remains constant forever". Former CIL director (technical) Binay Dayal, a signatory of the letter, on Tuesday said 75 former chairpersons, managing directors and directors of the PSUs have written to the prime minister over the issue. In the March 23 letter, the former top executives said the pension fixed at the time of retirement remains "constant forever without any adjustment for rise in prices", leaving many retired miners struggling. They alleged mismanagement of the Coal Mines Pension Scheme (CMPS)-1998 corpus and suboptimal investment decisions as the root cause of the pension amount remaining static, pointing out that the Public Accounts Committee had highlighted these shortcomings in its 12th report. Despite the government's stated commitment to review and

Committee calls for a 'more realistic' payout aligning with demands to raise the monthly floor to Rs 7,500

The Court observed that military service remains stressful even in non-operational areas and can contribute to serious health conditions

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The Kerala government on Monday set up the 12th Pay Revision Commission to study the revision of salaries of state government employees. State Finance Minister K N Balagopal said former Chief Secretary V P Joy has been appointed as the chairman of the commission. The other members are advocate M Rajagopalan Nair and retired Additional Secretary Sreelatha Sukumaran. V R Sobha, Additional Secretary in the Finance Department, will serve as the commission's secretary, Balagopal said in a statement here. The decision follows an announcement made in the state budget to appoint a new pay revision commission for government employees. Balagopal said the commission has been asked to submit its report within three months. He added that the government will ensure the process is completed on time. A separate government order outlining the terms of reference of the commission will be issued soon, the minister said.

Regulator plans gradual shift towards 25% equity in government composite scheme and new asset classes, including AIFs, to support long-term returns

Remarriage does not end a widow's entitlement, says court in interpretation of Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules

Centre approves wage hikes for public sector insurers and Nabard, and pension revisions for RBI and Nabard retirees, benefiting over 93,000 employees and pensioners

The move assumes significance, given that it will benefit about 46,322 employees, 23,570 pensioners, and 23,260 family pensioners

PFRDA CHAIrman S Ramann saiD Access to Pension Products is essential for every Citizen as long-term financial security cannot be left to chance

Tamil Nadu Assured Pension Scheme will provide state government employees with a guaranteed monthly pension of 50% of their last-drawn salary alongside inflation-linked dearness allowance benefits

The court held that the petitioner had consistently disclosed his long-term live-in relationship and the continuous absence of his legally wedded wife throughout his service

Housing-related needs accounted for the highest number of partial withdrawal requests under the National Pension System in FY25, with Rs 1,327.91 crore withdrawn, PFRDA data show