In a significant move, the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) has backed the Centre’s decision to allow the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for eligible compassionate ground appointees. This could encourage many Central Autonomous Bodies (CABs) to follow suit. The OPS option is now available for those who applied for compassionate appointments before January 1, 2004, but started service on or after that date.
At CSIR, which operates as an autonomous body, there were many compassionate ground appointees who had applied for the job before January 1, 2004, the day when National Pension System (NPS) was implemented, but didn’t actually join until years later. As a result, these appointees ended up with NPS as their pension scheme.
What worked in favour of CSIR compassionate ground appointees?
On March 3, 2023, in an office memorandum (OM), the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare had given a one-time option to join OPS to central government employees who had been recruited in job results declared on or before December 31, 2003, against vacancies which occurred before January 1, 2004, and were covered under the NPS on joining service on after January 1, 2004.
Even though CAB employees also got the option to join OPS later on, the same option was not granted to compassionate ground appointees.
