The growth in enrolment of Atal Pension Yojana (APY) in FY23 which is targeted at unorganised sector workers, was led by 24 per cent growth in enrolments for the minimum pension of Rs 1,000 while enrolment under higher pension slabs declined during the year.
The enrolments under pension slabs of Rs 2,000, Rs 3,000, Rs 4,000, and Rs 5,000 witnessed a decline by 5.3 per cent, 8.2 per cent, 10.6 per cent, and 12.6 per cent respectively in FY23, according to data released by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA).
The share of enrolments under these pension slabs out of the total new enrolments in a financial year has declined from 61.4 per cent in FY16 to 7.9 per cent in FY23.
A senior PFRDA official said that the majority of the unorganised workers who have opted for Rs 1,000 pension are in the age group 21-30 years and 30 years down the line, the amount is meager to enable them to fulfill even their basic necessities.
“The beneficiaries of this scheme need to fulfill their current day-to-day requirements, thus hindering their ability to contribute a higher amount under the scheme,” he added.
The enrolments in the pension slab of Rs 1,000 saw a growth of 24 per cent to around 11 million in FY23. This was because all the 17 states with enrolments over one million till FY23 witnessed growth in this segment except Bihar where it declined by 7.2 per cent. The highest growth was recorded in Haryana and Punjab at 62 per cent and 52 per cent respectively.
Among the 17 states Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, and Punjab are the only states in FY23 that saw growth in collective enrolments in pension slabs between Rs 2,000 and Rs 5,000.
A senior banking official said that the target given to Public Sector Banks (PSBs) on APY is based on the number of enrolments irrespective of the amount of pension.
“It is also easier for the bank to board in the beneficiaries within the minimum pension slab and achieve their targets,” he added. “Though the beneficiary has the option to shift to a higher pension slab with increased contribution amount”.
In terms of pension amount-wise enrolments, about 82 per cent of subscribers have opted for the least amount of Rs 1,000 pension per month followed by 11 per cent opting for the highest amount of Rs 5,000 per month.
The Atal Pension Yojana (APY) is a central government scheme that was launched in 2015. The minimum age for joining APY is 18 years and the maximum age is 40 years.
The subscriber under APY is required to make a monthly/quarterly/six monthly contribution of an amount determined by the amount of pension chosen and the age of joining the scheme. The subscriber shall receive a government-guaranteed minimum pension of Rs 1,000 per month, Rs 2000 per month, Rs 3,000 per month, Rs 4,000 per month, or Rs 5,000 per month, after the age of 60 years until death, depending on the contribution chosen.
