THE PENSION PANACEA

0n August 24, the Union Cabinet approved the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), which will provide government employees with assured pension after retirement.

- Narayan Krishnamurthy

The scheme, to be effective from April 1, 2025, tries to find a middle ground between the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) that was phased out in favour of the contentious New Pension System (NPS) during the Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) regime two decades ago. It is expected to benefit around 2.3 million central government employees along with those from the states that come on board. The employees as well as retirees will have the option to either opt for the UPS or continue with the NPS, a market-linked contributory scheme.

Even as the Opposition has charged the present BJP regime with taking yet another "U-turn" after a lacklustre performance in the Lok Sabha election, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has called the reform a sign of "flexible, choice-driven governance". As per estimates, it will cost the government Rs 6,250 crore in the first year itself.