Option to avail benefits on death or invalidation or disability of Subscriber during service – Rule 10 of Central Civil Services (Implementation of National Pension System) Rules, 2021

 Option to avail benefits on death or invalidation or disability of Subscriber during service – Rule 10 of Central Civil Services (Implementation of National Pension System) Rules, 2021

MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS
(Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare)

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 30th March, 2021

10. Option to avail benefits on death or invalidation or disability of Subscriber during service. – (1) Every Government servant covered under the National Pension System shall, at the time of joining Government service, exercise an option in Form 1 for availing benefits under the National Pension System or under the Central Civil Service (Pension) Rules, 1972 or the Central Civil Service (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 1939 in the event of his death or boarding out on account of disablement or retirement on invalidation. Government servants, who are already in Government service and are covered by the National Pension System, shall also exercise such option as soon as possible after the notification of these rules.

(2) The option shall be exercised to the Head of Office who will accept the same after verifying all the facts submitted therein and place it in the service book. A copy of the option shall be forwarded by the Head of Office to the Central Recordkeeping Agency through the Drawing and Disbursing Officer and the Pay and Accounts Officer for their record. The Pay and Accounts Officer shall also make suitable entry in the online system indicating the details regarding the option exercised by the Government servant.

(3) (a)(i)Every Government servant shall, along with the option in Form 1, also submit details of family in Form 2 to the Head of Office;

(ii) If the Government servant has no family, he shall furnish the details in Form 2 as soon as he acquires a family.

(b) The Government servant shall communicate to the Head of Office any subsequent change in the size of his family, including the fact of marriage of his child.

(c) As and when a disability referred to in the proviso to sub-rule (6) of rule 54 of the Central Civil Service (Pension) Rules, 1972 manifests itself in a child which makes him unable to earn his living, the fact shall be brought to the notice of the Head of Office duly supported by a Medical Certificate from a Medical Officer, not below the rank of a Civil Surgeon. This may be indicated in Form 2 by the Head of Office. As and when the claim for family pension arises, the legal guardian of the child may make an application supported by a fresh medical certificate from a Medical Officer, not below the rank of Civil Surgeon, that the child still suffers from the disability.

(d)(i) The Head of Office shall, on receipt of the Form 2, acknowledge receipt of the Form 2 and all further communications received from the Government servant in this behalf, countersign it indicating the date of receipt and get it pasted on the service book of the Government servant concerned;

(ii) The Head of Office on receipt of communication from the Government servant regarding any change in the size of family shall incorporate such a change in Form 2.

(4)(i) The option exercised under sub-rule (1), may be revised at any number of times by the Subscriber before his retirement by making a fresh option intimating his revised option to the Head of Office. On receipt of the revised option, the Head of Office and the Pay and Accounts Officer shall take further action as mentioned in sub-rule (2);

(ii) A Subscriber who is discharged on invalidation or disability shall be given an opportunity to submit a fresh option at the time of such discharge;

(iii) Where such Subscriber does not exercise a fresh option or is not in a position to exercise fresh option at the time of discharge, the option already exercised by the Subscriber shall become operative;

(iv) Where no option was exercised by the Subscriber and the Subscriber is not in a position to exercise an option at the time of discharge, his case will be regulated in accordance with sub-rule (6).

(5) In the case of death of a Subscriber while in service, the last option exercised by the deceased Subscriber before his death shall be treated as final and the family shall have no right to revise the option.

(6)(i) Where a Subscriber who did not exercise an option under sub-rule (1) and dies before completion of service of fifteen years or within three years of the notification of these rules, his family will be granted family pension in accordance with the provisions of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 or the Central Civil Services (Extraordinary Pension) Rules,1939 as the case may be, as a default option;

(ii) Where a Subscriber is discharged from Government service on invalidation or disability before completion of service of fifteen years or within three years of the notification of these rules without exercising an option under subrule (1), and is also not in a position to exercise an option at the time of discharge, he will be granted invalid pension or disability pension in accordance with the provisions of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 or theCentral Civil Services (Extraordinary Pension) Rules,1939 as the case may be, as default option;

(iii) In all other cases, where no option was exercised by the Subscriber, the claim of the Subscriber on discharge from the service and that of the family on death of the Subscriber, shall be regulated in accordance with the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (Exits and Withdrawals under National Pension System) Regulations, 2015, as default option.

(7) In cases where the option exercised by the deceased Subscriber in accordance with sub-rule (1) or the default option in accordance with sub-rule (6) for benefit under the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 or the Central Civil Services (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 1939 becomes infructuous on account of non-availability of an eligible member of the family for grant of family pension under the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 or the Central Civil Services (Extraordinary Pension) Rules, 1939, such option would be deemed to have become invalid and the benefits admissible under the National Pension System shall be granted to the legal heir(s) of the employee in accordance with the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (Exits and Withdrawals under National Pension System) Regulations, 2015.