Utility News Desk !!! Old Pension Scheme (OPS) is a pension scheme under which the salary of government employees was based on their salary at the time of retirement. Under this scheme, pension was also given to the family members of the retired employee after his death. However, the old pension scheme was abolished in India under pension reforms by the central government. This scheme was abolished from 1 January 2004. These provided a defined-benefit pension of half of the last salary drawn at the time of retirement, including components such as dearness allowance, etc.
The National Pension System came into effect on 22 December 2003. Under this, the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) was implemented. While the old pension scheme OPS provided a fixed pension of up to 50 percent of the last basic salary at the time of retirement. Old pension schemes also provide guaranteed income after retirement.
However, the NDA government discontinued the old pension scheme in 2004. Then the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government introduced the National Pension System. Under the old pension scheme, retired government employees got the benefit of revision of dearness relief twice a year. Regarding employees eligible for the old pension scheme, the DoPT has said that members of the AIS selected through the Civil Services Examination, 2003, Civil Services Examination, 2004 and Indian Forest Service Examination, 2003 are eligible to be covered under these provisions.
Rajasthan reintroduced the old pension scheme in April 2022. Subsequently, Chhattisgarh notified the scheme in December 2022, Jharkhand, Punjab in October 2022 and Himachal Pradesh on April 17, 2023. The Old Pension Scheme (OPS) is a secure pension scheme. It is paid from the government treasury.
