| Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said that since his government assumed office in 2017, pension accounts for approximately eight lakh state government employees had been opened in Uttar Pradesh. In response to a question on the New Pension Scheme (NPS) in the UP Legislative Council on Wednesday,  Chief Minister Yogi highlighted the significant strides made by his administration in this regard. The NPS was originally implemented in 2005 during the tenure of the Samajwadi Party government led by Mulayam Singh Yadav. Despite the Bahujan Samaj Party being in power from 2007 to 2012 and the SP from 2012 to 2017, not a single pension account was opened for employees during those periods, the chief minister said. He added that in 2018, upon discovering issues with the pension accounts, his administration formed a committee chaired by the then finance secretary. The committee also included relevant experts and held discussions with employees organisations, addressing concerns that affected about eight lakh employees, he added. The chief minister explained that the committee found it essential for the government to increase its contribution slightly to provide 50 per cent of the employees last drawn salary as pension. Assessments indicated that if both the government and employees deposited money on time and connected their contributions to a scheme, employees could receive approximately 60 per cent of their money as pension after retirement, he added. To address this, the governments share in the pension scheme was increased from 10 per cent to 14 per cent. The accounts of all employees were opened, and the contributions from 2005 to 2017, which had not been deposited due to the lack of accounts, were also credited, Yogi pointed out. He informed the House that approximately 70,000 employees, who were in the final stages of appointment when the NPS was implemented in 2005, have been retained under the Old Pension Scheme, with many of these employees being teachers. Chief Minister Yogi also addressed concerns about the NPS funds being deposited in private banks, stating that these complaints have been taken seriously. He assured that actions have been taken to rectify this, and efforts are underway to ensure the return of these funds. He emphasised that it is a priority for the government to ensure that money from any government scheme is deposited only in nationalised banks. Earlier, the chief minister congratulated Lal Bihari Yadav on becoming the leader of the opposition in the Legislative Council. He quipped, I hope you always remain the leader of the opposition. He highlighted the diverse representation in the Upper House, where members come from various societies, including local bodies, teacher constituencies, graduate voters, and nominations by the governor. He affirmed the governments commitment to respecting the sentiments of the members and adhering to any necessary guidelines received from the chair. Pension accounts of eight lakh govt employees opened since 2017: CM PNS | Lucknow Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said that since his government assumed office in 2017, pension accounts for approximately eight lakh state government employees had been opened in Uttar Pradesh. In response to a question on the New Pension Scheme (NPS) in the UP Legislative Council on Wednesday,  Chief Minister Yogi highlighted the significant strides made by his administration in this regard. The NPS was originally implemented in 2005 during the tenure of the Samajwadi Party government led by Mulayam Singh Yadav. Despite the Bahujan Samaj Party being in power from 2007 to 2012 and the SP from 2012 to 2017, not a single pension account was opened for employees during those periods, the chief minister said. He added that in 2018, upon discovering issues with the pension accounts, his administration formed a committee chaired by the then finance secretary. The committee also included relevant experts and held discussions with employees organisations, addressing concerns that affected about eight lakh employees, he added. The chief minister explained that the committee found it essential for the government to increase its contribution slightly to provide 50 per cent of the employees last drawn salary as pension. Assessments indicated that if both the government and employees deposited money on time and connected their contributions to a scheme, employees could receive approximately 60 per cent of their money as pension after retirement, he added. To address this, the governments share in the pension scheme was increased from 10 per cent to 14 per cent. The accounts of all employees were opened, and the contributions from 2005 to 2017, which had not been deposited due to the lack of accounts, were also credited, Yogi pointed out. He informed the House that approximately 70,000 employees, who were in the final stages of appointment when the NPS was implemented in 2005, have been retained under the Old Pension Scheme, with many of these employees being teachers. Chief Minister Yogi also addressed concerns about the NPS funds being deposited in private banks, stating that these complaints have been taken seriously. He assured that actions have been taken to rectify this, and efforts are underway to ensure the return of these funds. He emphasised that it is a priority for the government to ensure that money from any government scheme is deposited only in nationalised banks. Earlier, the chief minister congratulated Lal Bihari Yadav on becoming the leader of the opposition in the Legislative Council. He quipped, I hope you always remain the leader of the opposition. He highlighted the diverse representation in the Upper House, where members come from various societies, including local bodies, teacher constituencies, graduate voters, and nominations by the governor. He affirmed the governments commitment to respecting the sentiments of the members and adhering to any necessary guidelines received from the chair.

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