Upset With UPS, Govt. Employees Plan Jantar Mantar Protest To Seek Restoration Of Old Pension Scheme

Finding the UPS not so attractive, several employee associations are now planning to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar on November 9, pressing for the reinstatement of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), which was replaced by the National Pension System (NPS) in 2004.

Along with the All-India NPS Employees Federation, the leading organisation, other associations plan to hold a protest to press for the reversal of OPS. Its president, Manjeet Singh Patel, told The Secretariat that they have written to the Delhi Police informing them about the gathering.

UPS Struggles To Gain Traction

Sources in the government confirmed that so far, only about 4.5 per cent, that is 1.11 lakh of the 23.93 lakh eligible employees under the NPS, had decided to switch to the UPS.

The Union Cabinet, at its meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had approved the UPS in August 2024, and the Ministry of Finance rolled it out with effect from April 1 this year. Initially, employees under the NPS had till June 30 to opt-in for UPS, but the deadline has been extended twice due to the slow pace of adoption, first till September 30 and now then till November 30.

Under the OPS, employees get 50 per cent of their last drawn basic salary as pension. All those employed on or after January 1, 2004, are under the NPS, in which the pension amount is linked to the market fluctuations and the amount invested by the employee.

With employees continuing to demand a return to OPS, the government last year came up with the UPS, in which employees have been guaranteed 50 per cent of the average basic pay drawn in the last 12 months prior to retirement as a pension for those completing 25 years of service.

Employees Reject New Pension Plan

Employees under the NPS have the option of switching over to UPS. But, many Central government employees, requesting anonymity, said the NPS, which is linked to the markets, was still a better option than the UPS.

“The Government of India took nearly two decades to recognise the seriousness of the issues surrounding the National Pension System (NPS). After a prolonged delay, the government constituted an NPS Review Committee on 6 April 2023, and invested considerable time and resources to formulate an alternative under the name UPS,” Patel said.

He, however, contended that the UPS has proven to be ineffective and disappointing for government employees. “The scheme lacks a clear provision for refund of the employee’s contribution and does not ensure pension benefits immediately after voluntary retirement, making it unacceptable to the workforce,” he added.

Given the understanding of the employees about the UPS, Patel said, “The Federation, along with its allied organisations, will launch a fresh nationwide movement and organise a mass rally on 9 November 2025 at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, where thousands of employees from across the country will assemble to voice their opposition to both NPS and UPS.”

Government Urged To Reconsider UPS

The issues relating to the shortcomings of the UPS were already raised during a meeting with the Pension Ministry on 24 February 2025, Patel said, adding: “Despite this, the Government of India issued a revised Gazette notification on September 2, 2025, which offered no significant improvement except allowing voluntary retirement after 20 years of service.”

“If an employee takes voluntary retirement at the age of 45 or 50, he or she will have to wait till the age of 60 years to get the pension. We have asked the government to reconsider this in order to bring parity for those taking VRS,” Patel further said.

He went on to add that during a follow-up meeting with the Pension Ministry on October 7, 2025, the Federation extended its gratitude to the Pension Secretary for the Ministry’s proactive approach and requested immediate attention to the key unresolved issues of employees under the UPS.