Old Pension Scheme: These government employees can now opt for OPS—will more get the same benefit?

The OPS option is now available to eligible compassionate ground appointees who applied for appointment before January 1, 2004, but joined government service on or after January 1, 2004 and were consequently covered under the National Pension System (NPS).

Many compassionate ground appointees had applied for jobs before January 1, 2004, but their appointments were completed only after the National Pension System came into force. As a result, despite applying before the cut-off date, they were automatically covered under NPS instead of OPS.

A June 22, 2026 communication from the Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare clarified that eligible compassionate ground appointees who had applied on or before the prescribed cut-off date could be considered under the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021 (OPS). This paved the way for eligible employees to exercise the OPS option.

On July 7, 2026, CSIR directed its laboratories and institutes to implement the Centre's decision. Since CSIR is a Central Autonomous Body, its move could encourage other autonomous organisations to consider extending the same OPS option to similarly placed compassionate ground appointees.

No. The decision does not automatically apply to all Central Autonomous Bodies. Each organisation will need to separately endorse or implement the Centre's decision. While many bodies may follow CSIR's example, there is currently no blanket order covering all CAB employees.

The immediate beneficiaries are compassionate ground appointees who satisfy the prescribed eligibility conditions and whose organisations adopt the Centre's decision. Employees appointed through regular recruitment or those who do not meet the eligibility criteria are not covered by this development.

Eligible compassionate ground appointees should check whether their organisation has adopted the Centre's decision. They should also verify the date of their application, appointment and joining, as these determine whether they qualify for the OPS option under the latest guidelines.

CSIR's decision may become a template for other Central Autonomous Bodies. If more organisations adopt similar orders, a larger number of eligible compassionate ground appointees could receive the option to switch from NPS to OPS, although implementation will depend on each organisation's decision.