Page 3 - Pensions

Govt retirees under NPS with 10+ yrs can claim UPS scheme benefits

Central govt employees retired under NPS with 10+ years of service can now claim additional pension benefits under the new Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) by June 30, 2025.

Centre's new rule to deny pension to ex-govt staff in PSUs for misconduct

Centre amends pension rules: PSU employees dismissed for misconduct will now lose pension benefits from previous government service. Know what's changed under Rule 37 and its implications

Supreme Court orders equal pensions for all HC judges, ending disparity

The top court was hearing a suo motu case related to judicial retirement benefits, along with writ petitions submitted by several retired judges

Nitish Kumar-led Bihar govt hikes DA for its employees, pensioners to 55%

The Bihar government announced a 2 percentage points increase in Dearness Allowance (DA) for its employees and pensioners on Friday. The decision was taken at a meeting of the state cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. With this hike, employees and pensioners in the pay scale of the 7th Pay Commission will get DA and Dearness Relief (DR) of 55 per cent, Additional Chief Secretary (Cabinet Secretariat) S Siddharth said. "A hike of 6 percentage points has been approved for those in the pay scale of the 6th Pay Commission. This will raise their DA and DR to 252 per cent. For those in the pay scale of the 5th Pay Commission, the DA and DR have been raised by 11 percentage points to 466 per cent," he said. The hike will benefit more than 5 lakh employees and over 6 lakh pensioners, officials said. It will be effective from January 1, 2025, they said.

Unified Pension Scheme explained: Key features, FAQs, and what's new

The new Unified Pension Scheme combines guaranteed benefits with NPS flexibility. Know its key features, FAQs, and what's changing for central govt employees starting January 2004

Moving abroad? Changes you must make in your bank, demat, and MF accounts

NRIs must also comply with the tax filing norms that apply to them once their residency status changes

Adopt liberal approach while considering disability pension to army men: SC

Observing that a liberal approach must be adopted while construing beneficial provisions, the Supreme Court has granted disability pension to an army man who was relieved from the service as he was suffering from "Schizophrenia." The top court noted that the decision of the authority to discharge a serviceman is based on a medical report which is devoid of reasons. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and N Kotiswar Singh said the requirement to give reasons by the Medical Board is crucial, critical, decisive and necessary for granting or denying disability pension. The apex court said it is not a mere formality, but a necessary material based on which the pension sanctioning authority has to decide about the grant or refusal of disability pension. "Accordingly, in our opinion, if the serviceman is discharged from service or denied the disability pension on the basis of a medical opinion which is devoid of reasons, it would strike at the root of the action taken by the authority, and su

Hike minimum pension under EPS, complete evaluation by 2025: Panel

The EPS, which came into effect in November 1995, is administered by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation

Facing marital issue?Women officers can now prioritise children for pension

Women officers in marital disputes given option to ensure children's financial security

RBI asks banks to pay 8% interest for delay in central govt pension payment

Interest should be paid automatically, without any demand from the pensioner: RBI circular

Experts divided over HC verdict on pension rights to second wife

Legal experts term it a 'progressive' order which may open Pandora's box

EPFO eases withdrawal process, no need for bank account verification

Retirement fund body EPFO on Thursday said applicants seeking withdrawal from provident funds online do not have to upload the image of a cancelled cheque and their bank accounts need not be verified by employers. The move is expected to fast-track claim settlement process for nearly eight crore members and ensure ease of doing business for employers. At present, members of Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), while applying for withdrawal of funds from PF accounts online, need to upload image of cheque leaf or attested photo copy of the passbook of the bank account seeded with the UAN (Universal Account Number) or PF number. The employers are also required to approve the bank account details of the applicant. The EPFO has completely dispensed with the requirement of uploading an image of a cheque leaf or attested bank passbook while filing online claims, the labour ministry said in a statement. These two steps have been done away with to ensure 'ease of living' for EPF .

Govt appoints Sivasubramanian Ramann as the next PFRDA chirperson

Ramann, who is currently serving as the deputy comptroller and auditor general (CAG) and chief technology officer at the CAG of India, has been appointed for a tenure of five years

RBI tells banks to continue joint account for surviving spouse's pension

Spouse entitled for family pension must be survivor

New pension rules for divorced daughters, claim process made easy

A divorced or separated daughter can claim her deceased father's pension. Single mothers in government job can now avail of up to two years of leave in a phased manner

Bengal govt gives nod for ad hoc bonus of Rs 6,800 for section of employees

The West Bengal government decided to extend an ad hoc bonus of Rs 6,800 to all its employees who do not come under any productivity-linked bonus system, and have revised monthly emoluments below Rs 44,000 in March, a senior official said on Wednesday. An order in this regard was issued by the finance department on Tuesday which also stated that employees belonging to the Muslim community would be receiving the bonus before Eid-ul-Fitr festival, scheduled later this month, while others would have it in the September 15-19 period, he said. Pensioners would get an ex gratia of Rs 3,500, the official said. The state government also decided to sanction an interest-free advance up to a maximum of Rs 20,000 for those employees having monthly emoluments not exceeding Rs 52,000 in March, he said referring to the order of the finance department.

EPFO settles 21.6 mn claims within 3-day deadline via auto mode: Govt

Retirement fund body EPFO settled a record number of 2.16 crore claims through the autonomous process in the current financial year till March 6, which was more than double the figure of last fiscal, Parliament was informed on Monday. In the previous financial year, the EPFO (Employees' Provident Fund Organisation) had settled 89.52 lakh claims. Now, 60 per cent of advance (withdrawal) claims are processed through auto mode, said Minister of State for Labour & Employment Shobha Karandlaje in a written reply to Lok Sabha. The minister said the limit for processing of advance (part withdrawal) claims through auto mode has also been enhanced to Rs 1 lakh. In addition to illness/hospitalisation related claims, partial withdrawals for housing, education and marriage have also been enabled under auto mode, the minister told the House, adding that claims under the auto mode are processed within three days. EPFO achieved a historic high of 2.16 crore claim settlement as on March 6, 2025 .

HP debt at Rs 1 trn, govt spending Centre's aid on giving salaries: BJP

BJP Himachal Pradesh Media In-charge Karan Nanda on Saturday lashed out at the Congress-led state government for increasing the state's debt to one lakh crore and demanded that it reveal where the funds are being utilised. While addressing a press conference in Shimla, Nanda said that despite receiving Rs 11,000 crore in financial aid from the central government for various schemes, the state government is using that money for salaries and pensions instead of development. He stated that the Congress-led government had failed to deliver on development despite taking loans and was instead blaming the central government. He further pointed out that with the central government's Rs 11,000 crore funding, the state government had been using Rs 1,000 crore each month just to pay the salaries of employees. Nanda mentioned that the state government has failed to pay salaries and pensions on time, leading to protests by employees as well as the public. He added that during BJP National ...

Over 100,000 babies enrolled for NPS Vatsalya, says PFRDA Chairperson

More than 1 lakh babies have opted for the NPS Vatsalya scheme, which was launched in September last year to allow parents to save for their children by investing in pension accounts, according to a senior official. Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA) Chairperson Deepak Mohanty on Wednesday said the regulator is doing a lot of outreach and also expanding the intermediary base as pension penetration is low in the country. "New born babies can also opt for NPS. I am happy to say that since the product was launched by the finance minister in September last year, we have more than 1 lakh babies opting for NPS Vatsalya," he said at an event in the national capital. He was participating in a discussion at the Civis' Public Consultation Awards 2025 function organised by non-profit platform Civis. Under the NPS Vatsalya scheme, all minor citizens up to the age of 18 years are eligible to open an account. The minimum monthly contribution that can be made by a parent or .

SC issues contempt notice to Punjab for not implementing pension scheme

The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a contempt notice to the Punjab chief secretary for failing to implement a three-decade-old pensionary benefits scheme in the state. Observing the court couldn't be taken for a ride, a bench of Justices Abhay Oka and N Kotiswar Singh asked the chief secretary to answer why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him for the violation of the undertakings. "In spite of repeated undertakings given to the high court, compliance has not been made by the state government. Therefore, we issue showcause notice to K A P Sinha, chief secretary, State of Punjab calling upon him to showcause why action under the Contempt Of Courts Act 1971 (both civil and criminal) should not be initiated against him," the court said. The bench said if the official felt some other officer was at fault, he was "free to file an affidavit" giving the names or other details of the officers responsible for the court to initiate action. The matter would be heard aga