Now, A Pension Scheme For Informal Sector Workers, Courtesy Central Government

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (5 March 2019) launched the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PM-SYM) scheme that assures a monthly pension of Rs 3,000 for enrolled unorganised sector workers in their old age.

The then finance minister, Piyush Goyal, first announced the scheme in his 2019-20 Budget speech on 1 February.

The Prime Minister noted that it was for the first time since Independence that such a scheme has been rolled out to provide social security for crores of workers engaged in the informal sector. Presently, around 42 crore workers are employed in informal enterprises.

Any worker between 18 to 40 years of age and earning less than Rs 15,000 a month will receive a pension of Rs 3,000 per month in his old age (after 60).

However, to benefit from the scheme, workers will have to contribute a monthly premium starting from Rs 55 (for age 18) which can vary according to age. The Union government will make a contribution of an equal amount as that of the beneficiary. The maximum contribution for a year cannot exceed Rs 2,400.

Hassle-Free Process

Beneficiaries can enrol in the nearby Common Service Centre (CSC) and PM Modi has assured them that they will not face any hassle during the process.

The beneficiaries will only have to fill a form and provide their respective Aadhar numbers and bank details. The Union government will bear the cost incurred by the Common Service Centre for enrolling a beneficiary. “This is the miracle of Digital India”, the PM said.