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The Chhattisgarh government on Friday gave the option to all government employees to choose between the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) and the New Pension Scheme (NPS), amid the Centre's refusal to refund deposits in the NPS.
All government employees appointed after April 2022 are eligible to draw post-retirement benefits under OPS. Chhatisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel's announcement on the restoration of OPS for state employees in his Budget speech was welcomed by the staffers at government offices but the celebrations were cut short after the Centre turned down the state's demand to refund over Rs17,000 crore deposited in the NPS. In a meeting of the Council of ministers, the Chhattisgarh government decided that instead of November 1, 2004, state government employees will become members of the Chhattisgarh General Provident Fund on April 1, 2022. Also, the state government gave an option to employees appointed before April 1, 2022, to remain in the NPS or to join the OPS. For this, the employees will have to submit an affidavit stating their choice. If an employee opts for the OPS, he or she has to deposit the government's contribution and dividend in the NPS account from November 1, 2004, to March 31, 2022, to the state government. At the same time, employee contributions and dividends deposited in NPS during this period will be given to government employees under NPS rules. (ANI)
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