The Hindu Business Line : `New Pension plan offers flexibility'

(From right) Mr. Norman R Sorensen, President, Principal International; Ms Meena Chaturvedi, Executive Director, PFRDA; and Mr S.V. Mony, Secretary General, Life Insurance Council; at a conference on Pensions Reforms in the Capital on Thrusday. - - Kamal Narang

New Delhi , Feb. 16

THE New Pension Scheme (NPS) under the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Bill 2005 addresses the concerns of the subscribers by offering a credible choice of funds and fund managers the option of switching between portfolios, Ms Meena Chaturvedi, Executive Director of PFRDA, said on Thursday. Inaugurating a conference on Pension Reforms in India, organised jointly by industry chamber FICCI and PFRDA, Ms Chaturvedi said the Government, through the Bill, was committed to providing to the people an array of choices to meet their retirement needs.

The NPS, she said, should be seen as complementing the existing long-term saving instruments. However, it would not be prudent to expect social security benefits through budgetary support, she added.

Mr Norman Sorensen, President and CEO, Principal International Inc, US, and Chairman, US Coalition of Service Industries, said India had a potential of 250 million participants capable of creating $100 billion assets in 2015. Its growth, however, depends on implementation. India's population over the age of 60 has grown at an annual rate of 4 per cent between 1991 and 2001 as against a growth of 2 per cent for the general population, he said. In 2010, 9 per cent of India's population will be over 60, rising to 14 per cent in 2030 and 17 per cent in 2040.

The FICCI President, Mr Saroj K Poddar, said pension reforms would bring forth a huge new business opportunity and make available long-term funds for infrastructure development.

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