UPS announced, 8th Pay Commission next? Railway staff union raises demand

The announcement of the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), which is seen as striking a balance between the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) and the National Pension System (NPS), has been welcomed by the National Federation of Indian Railwaymen (NFIR), a recognised union of Railway employees and pensioners.

The NFIR has requested the central government to announce the formation of the 8th Pay Commission, which will decide the fitment factor for the revision of salaries of employees.

Normally, pay commissions are formed once in 10 years. The previous pay panel, which was the 7th Pay Commission, was constituted in February 2014 and its recommendations were implemented from January 1, 2026 onwards.

NFIR, in a statement issued to the press, said it has already submitted a detailed proposal for the setting up of the 8th Pay Commission before Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It pointed out that more than 8.5 years have passed from the date of last revision of the basic salaries of central government employees.

UPS gets Cabinet nod

The Union Cabinet, on Saturday, August 24, gave its approval for UPS which guarantees a minimum pension of 50% of the basic salary of the last 12 months before retirement. This will be applicable for government employees who complete at least 25 years in service.

The NFIR, while welcoming the move, said the minimum period of time spent in service should be lowered to 20 years to allow more number of employees to benefit from the scheme.

Notably, UPS has been announced at a time when a section of central government employees, along with the unions representing them, have marked their concerns over NPS, which allows employees to build a retirement corpus with regular investment during employment years.

Under UPS, the immediate kin of the deceased employees will be eligible to receive 60% of the pension amount.

The scheme also guarantees a minimum pension amount of ₹10,000 per month for government employees who complete at least 10 years in service.