RAS question
What is the assured pension percentage under the Unified Pension Scheme for employees with 25+ years of service?
Correct answer: (B) 50% of average basic pay.
Under the Unified Pension Scheme, an employee with at least 25 years of qualifying service is assured a pension equal to 50% of the average basic pay drawn over the last 12 months before superannuation.
Explanation
The Unified Pension Scheme fixes the assured pension for a full qualifying-service case at 50% of average basic pay. The key conditions are embedded in the formula: the employee must have a minimum qualifying service of 25 years, and the pay base is the average basic pay drawn over the last 12 months before superannuation. That is why 50%, not a higher or lower figure, is the correct answer for an employee with 25+ years of service. The PIB note also clarifies that the same assured pension is proportionate for shorter service, but only down to a minimum of 10 years; that caveat does not change the 25-year answer.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) 40% is below the UPS assured pension rate stated for employees with at least 25 years of qualifying service.
- (C) 60% is not the assured pension rate; the UPS uses 50% of the relevant average basic pay for 25-year qualifying service.
- (D) 75% overstates the benefit because the cited UPS formula fixes the assured pension at 50%, not three-fourths, of average basic pay.
Concept
This tests social security and pension reform under Indian governance, especially how welfare promises are converted into precise eligibility-and-benefit formulas. RAS repeatedly asks such scheme details because a single percentage or service condition can decide the answer.