**Executive Summary**
This document is an answer provided by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment to Unstarred Question No. 1448, concerning increasing pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS)-95, scheduled for response on February 9, 2026. It addresses requests from labour unions to increase the minimum pension to Rs. 9,000, providing details about the scheme's funding and current minimum pension. The document highlights the government's commitment to social security and the financial sustainability of the EPS.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Regarding Increasing Minimum Pension:**
* The government has received requests from stakeholders to increase the minimum EPS pension from Rs. 1,000 per month.
* **Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS) 1995 Details:**
* The EPS 1995 is a 'Defined Contribution-Defined Benefit' social security scheme.
* The Employees' Pension Fund is funded by:
* Employer contributions at 8.33% of wages.
* Central Government contribution of 1.16% on wages up to Rs. 15,000 per month.
* All benefits are paid out of this Fund.
* **Government's Role:**
* The government provides a minimum pension of Rs. 1,000 per month to pensioners under EPS 1995 through budgetary support, which supplements the 1.16% wage contribution towards EPFO.
* **Fund Valuation and Sustainability:**
* The fund is valued annually to determine its long-term viability.
* The Government of India is committed to providing robust social security through EPF Scheme, 1952, EPS-95 and EDLI schemes.
* **Pension Statistics:**
* The total number of active member pensioners under EPS-95 receiving a pension less than Rs. 9,000 is 47,04,270.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholder: Labour Unions / Public Representatives**
* **Impact:** Acknowledgment of their request for increased minimum pension under EPS-95.
* **Action Required:** Await further government decisions regarding pension increases, considering the current state of the scheme and its funding.
**Stakeholder: EPS Pensioners**
* **Impact:** Awareness of the current minimum pension amount and the government's financial support.
* **Action Required:** No immediate action required, but continued awareness of the scheme's status and potential future changes.
**Stakeholder: Government of India / Ministry of Labour and Employment**
* **Impact:** Demonstrates the government's awareness of the need to address low pension amounts and outlines the current scheme parameters.
* **Action Required:** Ongoing review of the EPS-95 scheme's financial sustainability and potential adjustments to pension levels and funding mechanisms.
**Stakeholder: Employees' Provident Fund Organization (EPFO)**
* **Impact:** Responsible for the management and sustainability of the pension fund.
* **Action Required:** Continue to conduct annual valuations of the fund.
Key Entities Referenced
Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS) 1995: A 'Defined Contribution-Defined Benefit' social security scheme providing a minimum pension to pensioners, funded by employer and Central Government contributions.
Employees' Provident Fund Organization (EPFO): Organization running the EPF Scheme, 1952, EPS-95 and EDLI Schemes
Ministry of Labour and Employment: The government ministry responsible for addressing the question regarding increasing pension under EPS-95.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1448
TO BE ANSWERED ON 09.02.2026
INCREASING OF PENSION UNDER EPS-95
1448. DR. KIRSAN NAMDEO:
Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to
state:
(a)whether it is a fact that various Labour Unions including the
Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) have urged the Government to
increase the minimum amount of pension under the Employees
Pension Scheme (EPS) 1995 to Rs. 9,000;
(b)if so, the details thereof along with the time by which the pension
is likely to will be increased; and
(c)the number of the retired EPS pensioners that are getting pension
less than Rs. 9,000?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
(SUSHRI SHOBHA KARANDLAJE)
(a) & (b): Representations have been received from various
stakeholders including trade unions and public representatives to
increase the minimum pension under the Employees’ Pension
Scheme (EPS), 1995 from the existing Rs. 1,000/- per month.
Employees' Pension Scheme, 1995 is a 'Defined
Contribution-Defined Benefit' social security scheme. The corpus of
the Employees' Pension Fund is made up of (i) contribution by the
employer @ 8.33 per cent of wages; and (ii) 1.16 per cent contribution
from Central Government on wages upto Rs.15,000/- per month. All
benefits under the scheme are paid out of this Fund.
The Government is providing a minimum pension of
Rs.1000 per month to the pensioners under the EPS, 1995 through
budgetary support, which is in addition to the budgetary support of
1.16 per cent of wages towards EPS to Employees' Provident Fund
Organization (EPFO).
Contd..2/-:: 2 ::
The fund is valued annually as mandated under paragraph
32 of EPS, 1995. The objective of the valuation is to determine the
long-term viability of the fund given the expected stream of money
inflows from contributions, etc. and the outflows in terms of benefits.
The Government of India is committed to provide robust
social security coverage through EPF Scheme, 1952, EPS-95 and EDLI
Schemes being run by EPFO, to the members of these schemes,
taking into consideration the sustainability of the respective funds as
well as the future liabilities thereon.
(c): The total number of active member pensioners under EPS
95 receiving pension of less than Rs 9000/- is 47,04,270.
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