The National Council–Joint Consultative Machinery (NC-JCM) has requested the government to expand Old Pension Scheme (OPS) relief for central government employees who joined service after the National Pension System (NPS) came into force but were recruited against vacancies sanctioned before 22 December 2003. According to a 5 September communication from NC-JCM secretary Shiva Gopal Mishra to staff-side members, the organisation wants vacancy sanction letters issued by ministries and departments before 22 December 2003 to be considered when determining OPS eligibility. The demand was raised during a 3 September 2026 meeting between the NC-JCM staff side and the secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT). In his latest communication, Mishra emphasized that legal rulings have favored employees recruited post-January 1, 2004, for OPS benefits, as the New Pension Scheme (NPS) took effect for central government workers on that date. The NC-JCM specifically requests that recruitment letters be considered equal to the December 22, 2003 NPS notification, rather than requiring employees to prove they were declared successful in results before December 12, 2003.
The NPS was notified on 22 December 2003 and became mandatory for new central government recruits from 1 January 2004, except the armed forces. In an Office Memorandum dated 3 March 2023, the Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare (DoP&PW) established that central government civil employees appointed against posts or vacancies advertised before 22 December 2003, but who joined service on or after 1 January 2004, could be given a one-time option to come under the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021. However, the existing framework does not automatically cover employees where recruitment was delayed at the directorate or unit level, even if the vacancy was sanctioned before the NPS notification. The Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare provided such employees a one-time option to join the OPS in an office memorandum dated February 17, 2020, taking cue from various court judgments that backed employees' claims. The DoPT secretary assured the staff side that the issue would be examined and appropriate action taken during the September 2026 meeting, as reported by Mishra.
Multiple court judgments have established that vacancy sanction letters dated prior to December 22, 2003, should be treated as notifications for OPS eligibility. As per Mishra's latest communication, court judgments of various High Courts and Central Administrative Tribunals have upheld that if the vacancy sanctioned letter of a central government is dated prior to December 22, 2003, then the employees recruited against those vacancies on or after January 1, 2004, should be brought under the Pension Scheme of CCS (Pension) Rules 1972 (Now 2021) in accordance with DOP&PW OM dated March 3, 2023. Notable judgments include CAT, Ernakulam Bench dated September 16, 2025, High Court of Kerala on June 22, 2026, and CAT, New Delhi on July 23, 2026. Speaking to ET Wealth Online, C Srikumar, general secretary of the All India Defence Employees' Federation (AIDEF), cited the example of the Ministry of Defence, which sanctioned more than 7,000 vacancies on May 5, 2003, for ordnance factories, with recruitment action extending until 2008, all employees were given the option of NPS. Srikumar insisted that since many courts have established that a vacancy sanction letter is a notification of OPS, the government should not force each and every employee to go to court.
The proposal could affect central government employees who were recruited after 1 January 2004, were placed under NPS, and can establish that the ministry or department had sanctioned the relevant vacancies before 22 December 2003. According to Mishra's representation, there were cases where ministries or departments sanctioned vacancies before 22 December 2003, but recruitment was delayed at the directorate, headquarters or unit level. The NC-JCM has cited defence civilian employees as examples, including cases where the Ministry of Defence sanctioned more than 7,000 vacancies for ordnance factories in May 2003, while recruitment continued for several years, and more than 900 vacancies sanctioned in December 2003 for the T-90 Tank Project against which recruitment continued into later years. The key difference is that the NC-JCM wants vacancy sanction letters of ministries or departments to be treated as notifications for deciding eligibility for the Old Pension Scheme, rather than requiring employees to prove they were declared successful in results before December 12, 2003. For employees who believe they fall into this category, key documents would include the original vacancy-sanction or release letter, recruitment notification, appointment order and records showing when they joined service.
The DoPT secretary assured the staff side that the issue would be examined and appropriate action taken during the September 2026 meeting, as reported by Mishra. However, the demand has not yet resulted in a government order extending OPS eligibility. The NC-JCM emphasizes that many NPS-bound employees have already moved to courts to get the OPS option, citing that they were declared successful in results declared on or before December 12, 2003, against vacancies that occurred before January 1, 2004. The organisation argues that since courts have established that vacancy sanction letters are notifications of OPS, the government should not force each employee to go to court for this benefit. Whether such employees ultimately qualify for OPS would depend on any decision or clarification issued by the competent government authority. The NC-JCM specifically requests that recruitment letters be considered equal to the December 22, 2003 NPS notification, rather than requiring employees to prove they were declared successful in results before December 12, 2003.
