Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman (image:facebook.com/nirmala.sitharaman/)
New Delhi: The Union government informed the Parliament on Monday (July 28) that 25,756 retired Central Government subscribers are eligible to receive additional benefits under Unified Pension Scheme (UPS).
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated this information as a response to a starred question posed by Lok Sabha MPs Kanwar Singh Tanwar and Dr. Sanjay Jaiswal.
“As on 20th July, 2025, 7,253 claims have been received and out of which 4,978 claims have been processed for payment of benefits under UPS,” Minister said.
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The eligible subscribers for the scheme are Central Government employees who were covered under the National Pension System (NPS) and have completed ten or more years of qualifying service. These individuals must have superannuated, deceased, or retired under Fundamental Rules 56(j) by March 31, 2025.
The UPS is introduced as an NPS option for Central Government employees, and there are no current proposals to extend its benefits to other schemes or sectors, Minister said.
The cut-off date to choose for UPS was extended for a period of three months upto 30th September, 2025.
Finance Minister further said that the Government has extended “Retirement gratuity” and “Death gratuity” benefits to Central Government employees covered by the UPS. These provisions are provided under the Central Civil Service Rules of 2021.
The Finance Minister also added that government employees who opt for UPS can also receive benefits under the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021, or the CCS (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 2023. This applies in cases where the employee dies while in service, or is discharged due to invalidation or disablement.
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“The Government has also extended tax benefits to UPS as are available to NPS under the Income Tax Act, 1961,” Minister said.
The Ministry of Finance has announced the UPS, effective from 1 April 2025, and the scheme is designed to provide assured payouts and enhanced benefits for eligible employees.
