NCR organized a press conference was held in the “Sankalp” auditorium of the Prayagraj Division Office under the chairmanship of Mr. Anurag Tripathi, Principal Chief Personnel Officer of North Central Railway, and Mr. Himanshu Badoni, Divisional Railway Manager/Prayagraj. During the press conference, details about the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), which was approved by the Union Cabinet under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 24, 2024, were shared. The conference was attended by Mr. Shashikant Tripathi, Chief Public Relations Officer, Mr. Sanjay Singh, Additional Divisional Railway Manager/General, and Mr. Manish Kumar Khare, Senior Divisional Personnel Officer.
During the press conference, Mr. Anurag Tripathi highlighted that the Government of India has introduced an excellent scheme. Indian Railways, being the largest organization in the country, employs over 1.3 million people. All these employees will benefit from the scheme, which will be implemented starting from April 1, 2025. Employees will have the option to choose between the National Pension System (NPS) and the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS). The UPS includes a provision for a ‘guaranteed pension.’
Under this scheme, for a minimum qualifying service of 25 years, employees will receive 50% of the average basic salary of the last 12 months before retirement as a pension. For shorter service periods, a proportionate pension will be provided. Additionally, under the guaranteed family pension provision, 60% of the employee’s pension will be given to the family members in the event of the employee’s death. The scheme ensures a minimum pension of ₹10,000 per month for those retiring after at least 10 years of service. The benefits of the inflation index will apply to the guaranteed pension, guaranteed family pension, and the minimum guaranteed pension.
It is noteworthy that North Central Railway has a total of 69,110 employees and officers, of which 55,587 are under the National Pension System (NPS) and 13,523 under the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). Additionally, 6,335 employees are no longer in service due to reasons such as retirement, VRS, or death. Thus, a total of 61,922 employees and officers in North Central Railway are currently under NPS, and they will have the option to choose between UPS and NPS.
In the Prayagraj division alone, there are 27,518 employees and officers under NPS, including 26,000 active personnel and 1,518 employees and officers who have retired, taken VRS, or passed away. They too will be given the choice between UPS and NPS.
