Central Employees Unhappy With Government Pension Scheme, 30 June is the last date

The government started an awareness campaign

The government has started giving presentations to explain the benefits of UPS in all ministries and government offices. A UPS calculator has also been launched so that the employees can themselves estimate how much pension they will get under this scheme. Despite this, out of about 27 lakh central employees across the country, only less than 10 thousand people have switched from NPS to UPS. That is, despite the best efforts of the government, the employees are not able to connect much with this scheme.

June 30 is the last date

The government has clearly said that existing or retired employees who do not switch to UPS by June 30, 2025, will be considered in NPS only. And once this date is over, then they will never be able to opt for UPS – unless the government extends this deadline. Therefore, if an employee wants to come to UPS, then he will have to decide before the stipulated date.

Why are employees hesitant to come to UPS?

Many experts believe that employees are currently assessing the pros and cons. Actually, even though there is a guarantee of pension at the time of retirement in UPS, the lump sum amount received in it is less than NPS. Apart from this, long service is mandatory to get full pension. Whereas in NPS 40% of the amount goes into annuity, but there is an option in it through which the invested amount can be recovered even after retirement. There is no such option in UPS. If the employee or his dependent dies, then the remaining amount is not returned. For this reason, people want to take a decision only after thinking carefully.

Which states have adopted UPS?

UPS was first adopted by the Maharashtra government. After this, many BJP ruled states like Gujarat, Bihar, Odisha and Assam have also implemented it. Madhya Pradesh is also preparing for it. However, the old pension scheme i.e. OPS is already in force in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, due to which there is doubt over UPS in these states. Uttar Pradesh has also not yet adopted UPS. Many non-BJP ruled states are still evaluating this scheme and calculating the pros and cons.

How much pension will be available in UPS?

Under UPS, if an employee has completed at least 25 years of service and retires (whether due to overage, voluntarily or under any rule), then he will get 50% of his average basic salary of the last 12 months as pension every month. Now there is a calculation formula, in which the entire service is converted into months and then it is multiplied with the average salary. If someone’s service is less than 10 years, then no pension will be given, and even if someone’s service is more than 25 years, then also a maximum of 25 years i.e. 300 months will be counted in the calculation.

Apart from this, there is also a provision of ‘Guaranteed Minimum Payment’. That is, if the employee has served for at least 10 years, then he is guaranteed a pension of Rs 10,000 every month. Yes, if the pension received according to the formula is more than 10 thousand, then only that will be given, otherwise this minimum guarantee rule will apply. Employees whose service is more than 10 years but less than 25 years will be given pension in proportion.

There may be a reduction in the approved payment

If an employee has already withdrawn a large part of his pension corpus or his total corpus is less than the benchmark corpus, then in that case the fixed pension can be reduced. This simply means that the less has been deposited, the less pension will be available. However, if an employee makes up for that shortfall by retirement, he can get full payment.

Who can enroll in UPS?

All the existing employees who come under NPS till April 1, 2025 can join this scheme. Apart from this, those who will join the job after April 1 will directly come under the purview of UPS. Also, those retired employees or their dependents who have retired under NPS by March 31, 2025 or have taken voluntary retirement can also come under UPS.