Committee to suggest changes, if necessary, to the existing structure of NPS.
The objective of the committee is to improve the pension benefits of the beneficiaries under the National Pension System (NPS).
The Finance Ministry has constituted a committee to review the pension system for government employees. The objective of the committee is to improve the pension benefits of the beneficiaries under the National Pension System (NPS). The committee has been constituted under the leadership of Finance Secretary TV Somanathan.
It will suggest whether any changes are necessary in the existing structure of NPS applicable to government employees. The committee will suggest amendments to improve the pensionary benefits of government employees covered under NPS keeping in view the financial implications and overall budgetary implications.
The decision to form the panel comes against the backdrop of some states implementing the previous pension system, which had assured pension as part of the last drawn salary.
Some states have promised to implement the old pension scheme due to populist measures. However, the implementation of the old pension scheme may put a burden on their coffers. In the panel committee, the finance ministry has included secretaries in the Department of Personnel and Training, a special secretary in the Department of Expenditure and a chairman of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). This decision is important before the general elections to be held in 2024.
The decision to set up the committee also took reference to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who last month said in the Lok Sabha that a committee to examine pensions would be set up to evolve a strategy to meet the demands of public employees while upholding fiscal responsibility. Committee will be established.
The state governments of Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have informed the Center about their decision to revert to the old pension system (OPS) and have sought withdrawal of NPS funding. In a statement in Parliament last month, the finance ministry said it was not considering any proposal to restore OPS for central government employees hired after January 1, 2004. His last drawn wages. With the increase in DA rates, the amount keeps on increasing. As OPS is non-contributory and costing the exchequer, it is not financially viable.
NPS has been introduced for all government employees, except persons in the Armed Forces, who entered the Central Government on or after January 1, 2004. Most of the State and Union Territory Governments have also informed NPS about their new vacancies.
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