According to a gazette notification, the government has officially notified the Integrated Pension Scheme as an option under the National Pension System.
The scheme is applicable to all central government employees who are covered under the National Pension System.
An assured payment under UPS will be available to employees who meet three specific criteria. The first criteria is if an employee retires after completing 10 years of qualifying service starting from the date of retirement. The second criterion is for employees opting for voluntary retirement after completing minimum qualifying service period of 25 years.
However, assured payment is not available in cases where an employee is removed from service or dismissed or resigns. Additionally, government employees who retire prematurely due to lack of honesty or effectiveness will still be eligible for UPS.
Before the introduction of UPS, employees enrolled in NPS did not receive a fixed pension. Pension payments depended on contributions from both employees and the government, which were invested in market-linked instruments. As a result, payments were subject to market fluctuations. UPS now provides more protection by providing guaranteed payments to eligible employees.
(This is a developing story.)
