NPS aims at ensuring financial security to every citizen by encouraging them to start contributing towards the old age saving.
The withdrawal right is hemmed by many conditions.
The protesters who had gathered under the banner of the Joint Forum for Restoration of Old Pension Scheme and National Joint Council of Action said they were worried about their post-retirement future.
Of the Rs 31,820.80 crore allocated to central sector schemes and projects, only Rs 11,868.05 crore was utilised, according to the revised estimates.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday launched a unique pension scheme for the poor called the 'Samajwadi Pension' that aims to cover as many as 40 lakh people not covered under the existing 'Old Age', 'Widow' or 'Disabled' pension schemes.
The beneficiaries will get increased pensions of Rs 1,100 from July.
The government plans to come up with a contributory pension scheme for its employees who joined service after October 2002, and set up a National Tax Tribunal to speed up settlement of disputes.
Employees' Pension Scheme has been asked to fold up and hand over subscribers to National Pension System
The National Pension System is applicable for government employees joining the service after April 1, 2004. It was based on the premise of contribution rather than defined benefit applicable for employees prior to the NPS.
NPS Vatsalya offers a disciplined investment avenue that parents can use to create intergenerational wealth by contributing even small sums.
A record amount of pension money may be finding its way into the stock market, if buying figures in the National Stock Exchange (NSE) data are any indication. Category inflows touched Rs 37,409 crore for the three months ending September 2025, shows an analysis of NSE data.
Officials said the broad objective of the study is to evaluate the extent to which the programme has achieved its aim and find out the factors responsible for its progress and suggest remedial measures needed to overcome the difficulties.
The National Pension System (NPS) added 21.5 per cent fewer fresh subscribers under the corporate segment in 2023 compared to the preceding year. Government officials and experts attribute it to the higher exemption limit of income tax of Rs 7 lakh announced in the FY24 Budget that no more requires employees under this income bracket to opt for NPS for tax-saving purposes. Data collated from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) reveals that the corporate component is voluntary in nature and saw 158,212 new subscribers in 2023 compared to 201,517 during 2022.
Part of the dues has been pending since 1995-96 - the inception year of the Employees' Pension Scheme administered by the EPFO. The Centre also owes the EPFO more than Rs 1,000 crore towards the minimum pension scheme it had notified in September 2014.
'The informal sector can grow at a 100 per cent rate -- we have to plan big.'
Sebi is working with other regulators to expand the CAS framework.
Among its 27 recommendations for the Union Budget is this: It has suggested that equity investments held for more than one year and up to three years should be taxed at 12.5 per cent on gains exceeding 2 lakh in a financial year.
According to official statistics, half of India's GDP comes from as many as 420 million workers in the unorganised sector including street vendors, rickshaw pullers, construction workers, rag pickers, agricultural workers, among others. This massive workforce remains outside the purview of the formal banking and insurance industries.
The fee for fund manager will change. As of now, they get 0.0009 per cent of the funds managed by them.
The change in the government's engagement with the economy's need for reforms is more nuanced than how analysts have so far perceived it, points out A K Bhattacharya.
The Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) adoption rate has risen to over 4.35 per cent, with more than 100,000 people out of 2.3 million eligible individuals opting for it, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) chairman S Ramann said in an exclusive interview with Business Standard on Monday. He also said that six states had approached the PFRDA for help in adoption of the scheme.
The most common mistake is investing without assessing suitability and long-term implications.
From April 1, subscribers will be able to change investment option & asset allocation twice a year, instead of once. Use greater flexibility offered by pension scheme judiciously.
'Stay invested but progressively reduce risk. Beyond a point, the objective should shift from maximising returns to avoiding unpleasant surprises.'
The government on Sunday gave a strong push to upgradation and expansion of healthcare infrastructure, medical education and pharma sector with the Union Budget 2026-27 announcing a slew of steps, including those aimed at making India a global hub for allied healthcare professionals and biopharma manufacturing.
The roll-out of the auto enrollment began in October 2012.
In 2025-26, the government allocated Rs 6,81,210 crore for defence budget.
Another populist decision of the government was the announcement of an unemployment allowance for the youth: Rs 1,000 per month for two years for graduates and those who have completed class 12 but remain unemployed.
India's market regulator is moving ahead to include real estate investment trusts (Reits) in benchmark indices in a phased manner, Sebi chief Tuhin Kanta Pandey said, while asserting that the regulator was working to strengthen the link between infrastructure building and the markets.
Those who have long retirement horizons of 15 to 20 years and seek higher long-term returns may opt for MSF. Investors nearing retirement (under 10 years) or those with low risk tolerance should stay away.
India is growing fast, but to keep growing strong, the government must make more things at home, create jobs, and spend money wisely, suggests Rajiv Memani, regional managing partner, Africa-India Region, EY.
He will hold the office till February 9, 2027.
'The tragedy underscored 'serious and widespread' weaknesses in the EPFO's monitoring system and its ability to detect and act against defaulting establishments.'
While the DMK depends on a 'silver sieve' of welfare schemes to stay in power, its support is slowly draining away under the weight of poor governance, corruption, and voters who are no longer satisfied with benefits alone and now want basic administration to work, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The strong domestic flow offset selling by foreign portfolio investors who pulled out $23.3 billion (Rs 2.03 trillion) from domestic equity markets in CY25.
'The new Bill introduces no policy or rate changes, leaving financial planning strategies largely unaffected.'
'The considerations for choosing between the old and new tax regimes remain essentially unchanged.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the record turnout in the first phase of the Bihar assembly polls indicates people's trust in the NDA government. He predicted victory for the NDA, led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and lauded the Election Commission for conducting successful elections.
'Government officials use Gmail and ordinary phones without basic security consciousness.' 'Interoperability, especially in joint exercises with countries like the US, worries me.' 'It often means we open our systems to them, but they don't reciprocate.' 'They could have kill switches in their systems and might even be able to affect ours.'
Wing Commander Suresh Damodar Karnik (retired), hero of the 1971 war, has politely declined an invitation extended by Shiv Shahir Babasaheb Purandare for a function to be held on May 28 in the presence of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
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