The long-running demand to raise the minimum pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS-95) continues to hang in limbo, with the Centre once again
facing questions in Parliament. Despite years of protests and repeated assurances, the basic pension remains stuck at Rs 1,000 per month, far below what pensioners say is needed to survive rising living costs. On December 15, the issue resurfaced in the Lok Sabha when MP Rajesh Ranjan questioned the Ministry of Labour and Employment about the delay in increasing the minimum EPS pension to Rs 7,500. He also sought clarity on why the government has not fully implemented the Supreme Court directions related to pension fixation based on higher wages. In its written response, the ministry explained the government’s position, acknowledged the scale of distress among pensioners, and shared updates on compliance with court orders, without committing to any timeline for a pension hike. What EPS-95 Pensioners Are Demanding EPS-95 pensioners across India have been seeking a minimum monthly pension of Rs 7,500, along with dearness allowance, family pension benefits, and free medical facilities. According to details raised in Parliament, nearly 78 lakh pensioners are struggling financially in old age. For several years, they have been urging the government to provide relief through peaceful demonstrations and representations, but a firm policy decision has remained out of reach. Why The Minimum Pension Hasn’t Changed Since 2014 Currently, the minimum pension under EPS-95 stands at Rs 1,000 per month, a figure fixed in 2014 with additional budgetary support from the Centre. Since then, there has been no revision, even as inflation and healthcare costs have risen sharply. Unlike other social security benefits, EPS pensions are not indexed to inflation or linked to dearness allowance, limiting any automatic increase over time. How The EPS Corpus Is Funded Explaining the financial structure of the scheme, the Labour Ministry stated that EPS-95 operates as a defined contribution, defined benefit system. “The corpus of the Employees’ Pension Fund is made up of (i) contributions by the employer @8.33 per cent of wages; and (ii) contributions from the Central Government through budgetary support @1.16 per cent of wages up to an amount of Rs 15,000/- per month. All benefits under the scheme are paid out of such accumulations,” the ministry said. Actuarial Deficit and DA Concerns The government cited financial constraints as a major hurdle. “The fund is valued annually as mandated under paragraph 32 of EPS, 1995, and as per the valuation of the fund as on 31.03.2019, there is an actuarial deficit,” it noted. This deficit, according to the ministry, makes a sharp hike in minimum pension or linking it to the cost-of-living index difficult. It also referred to a High Empowered Monitoring Committee, which found that introducing dearness allowance under EPS-95 was not feasible given the fund’s actuarial position. Supreme Court Orders: Progress But No Relief Yet On the implementation of Supreme Court judgments related to pension on higher wages, the government said the EPFO has processed nearly 99 per cent of applications received so far. While this signals administrative progress, it does little to address the core demand for a higher minimum pension.
