![\"Pension\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/pension-jpg.webp\")
Representational image\u00a0<\/p>\nNews Desk<\/p>\n
23 October 2025, 09:55 PM IST<\/p>\n
Only 4% of Central Government staff have opted for the new Unified Pension Scheme despite incentives and deadline extensions.<\/p>\n
Representational image\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite a series of incentives and deadline extensions, only about 4% of Central Government employees have opted for the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), which offers a guaranteed pension. Out of roughly 2.5 million Central Government staff, just over 1,00,000 employees have made the switch from the market-linked National Pension System (NPS) so far.<\/p>\n
The tepid response underlines the Centre\u2019s difficulty in convincing employees to embrace the new plan, which had initially been launched amid high expectations and sustained demands for an assured pension model.<\/p>\n
When and how was the UPS introduced?<\/strong><\/p>\n The government rolled out the option to migrate to the UPS from April 1, 2025, giving employees until June 30 to make their choice. The deadline was later extended twice \u2014 first to September 30 and then to November 30, 2025 \u2014 to encourage wider participation.<\/p>\n As per data available till October 14, 2025, enrolment stood at 38,569 civil employees, followed by 23,529 from the Railways, 18,303 from the Postal Department, 11,144 from Defence and 349 from Telecom.<\/p>\n Why is the response so low?<\/strong><\/p>\n Officials attribute the modest uptake to limited awareness and reluctance among paramilitary and railway personnel, who together form nearly two-thirds of all NPS subscribers in the Central Government. Many staff appear hesitant to shift to an unfamiliar system despite the government\u2019s push.<\/p>\n What does UPS offer?<\/strong><\/p>\n Under the Unified Pension Scheme, employees who complete at least 25 years of service will receive 50% of their last drawn basic salary (calculated on the average of the final 12 months) as a guaranteed pension upon retirement. The amount will be fully indexed to inflation, ensuring its real value is preserved.<\/p>\n The scheme also promises family security \u2014 the pensioner\u2019s spouse will get 60% of the last pension drawn after their demise. Those with a minimum of 10 years of service will still receive a guaranteed pension of \u20b910,000 per month. Pension benefits begin once the employee turns 60.<\/p>\n How does it compare with NPS?<\/strong><\/p>\n The National Pension System operates differently \u2014 it is market-linked and non-guaranteed. At retirement, subscribers can withdraw up to 60% of their accumulated corpus tax-free, while the remaining 40% must be invested in annuities to earn a regular pension, whose value depends on market returns.<\/p>\n For Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel, NPS currently allows voluntary retirement after 20 years of service with immediate pension (by investing 80% of the corpus in annuities). In contrast, under UPS, they can opt for voluntary retirement after 25 years, but their pension starts only after age 60, making it less attractive for CAPF staff.<\/p>\n What\u2019s next for UPS adoption?<\/strong><\/p>\n According to sources, employee unions are taking a cautious stance, anticipating possible additional retirement benefits from the government. To improve the scheme\u2019s appeal, the Centre recently introduced a one-time, one-way switch-back option allowing employees to return from UPS to NPS if they wish. In addition, UPS now carries the same income tax benefits as NPS to make it more competitive.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n