The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) is expecting a corpus of ₹15 lakh crore in the pension funds and a 12 lakh subscriber base by the end of the current financial year, Deepak Mohanty, Chairman, PFRDA, has said.
The response for NPS and Atal Pension Yojana was quite encouraging with the total Assets Under Management (AUM) stood at ₹13.4 lakh crore on a subscriber base of over 7.9 crore across the country as of November 2024, he said.
Adoption in Kerala
According to him, Kerala has shown encouraging growth in its contribution to NPS adoption. The State accounts for 3.38 per cent of private sector subscribers under NPS, showcasing increasing awareness of the scheme’s benefits. Moreover, 216 corporates from Kerala are registered under NPS, out of a total of 18,152 corporates nationwide that have adopted the scheme for their employees.
Mohanty, who was in Kochi for an interactive corporate awareness programme, said the penetration of corporate sector on-boarding under NPS is 1.15 per cent in Kerala and 3.38 per cent of the private sector subscribers are from the State. The participation of corporate subscribers aged less than 30 years is comparatively more in Kerala (17 per cent) than the rest of the country (14 per cent).
Financial security
With its tax benefits, flexible investment options, and competitive returns, NPS has become a preferred choice for both individuals and corporates seeking long-term financial security and retirement planning solutions.
India’s demographic trends, characterized by a rapidly ageing population and increasing life expectancy, emphasize the critical need for financial security post-retirement. However, only 5.7 per cent of Indian household assets are allocated to provident and pension funds, reflecting a significant gap in retirement preparedness. The rise of the gig economy and the unorganized sector, where 93 per cent of the workforce lacks statutory social security, further amplifies the relevance of NPS, he said.
PFRDA, according to him, has taken up several initiatives including systematic awareness campaigns, partnerships with trade bodies, and innovative subscriber-centric features, with the objective to bridge this gap by promoting financial literacy and creating a pensioned society.