Thousands of retired Central government employees are now eligible to receive additional benefits under the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), but the Centre has made it clear that these benefits will not be extended to other pension schemes or sectors for now.
Replying to a question in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said that 25,756 retired Central government subscribers are eligible to claim additional benefits under the UPS. He also shared the latest figures on claims received and processed under the scheme.
NEARLY 10,000 CLAIMS PROCESSED SO FAR
According to the written reply, 12,258 claims had been received under the Unified Pension Scheme as of July 9, 2026.
Out of these, 9,823 claims have already been processed for payment of benefits under the scheme. This means a majority of the applications received so far have been cleared, replied the Minister.
The government did not provide details on the timeline for processing the remaining claims.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
The additional benefits are available to retired Central Government employees who are covered under the Unified Pension Scheme.
The UPS has been introduced as an option under the National Pension System (NPS) for Central government employees who are already covered under the NPS.
NO PROPOSAL TO EXTEND UPS BENEFITS
The government also ruled out any immediate expansion of the scheme.
Responding to a question on whether similar benefits would be extended to other pension schemes or sectors in the future, the Finance Ministry said there is no proposal under consideration to do so.
This means the additional UPS benefits will remain limited to eligible Central government employees covered under the scheme.
WHAT IT MEANS FOR PENSIONERS
The latest update shows that the implementation of the Unified Pension Scheme is moving ahead, with thousands of eligible retirees already receiving benefits. At the same time, the government's clarification puts to rest speculation about a possible extension of similar benefits to other pension schemes or employees outside the Central government, at least for now.
- Ends
Published By:
Jasmine anand
Published On:
Jul 21, 2026 19:17 IST