Rules on government employee pension plans: The procedure for the submission and recognition of applications for lifetime pension arrears is well defined in the Pension Arrears Payment (Appointment) Rules 1983.
All government employees retiring are compulsorily required to submit the nomination for pension arrears in Form A while completing the pension papers. This appointment is then forwarded to the pension disbursing authority along with the PPO.
Pensioners who retired before the notification of the Pension Arrears Payment (Appointment) Rules 1983 were required to submit their application to the respective pension disbursement authority.
Procedure for processing retiree applications
The Department of Pensions and Retiree Welfare, in a note dated 31 March 2022, has requested all Ministries, Departments, Accounts Offices, CPAOs and Pension Disbursing Authorities and Banks to follow the procedure for handling appointments of retirees submitted under the Payment of Arrears Pension (Appointment) Rules, 1983 by setting out the following:
Actions of ministries/departments and attached/subordinate offices
Action by accountants
Action of the Pension Accounting Center
Pension Disbursement Authority/Bank Actions
Any employee who retired after notification of the rules, was required to submit the appointment, in triplicate, on Form A to the office manager or department from which the employee retired.
The office manager is required to return to the retiree a duly certified duplicate of the appointment on Form “A”. The triplicate copy of the nomination must be forwarded to the pension disbursement authority with the pension payment order, through the PAO/CPAO.
The retiree may subsequently change the appointment (if the nominee predeceases the retiree, or otherwise) by submitting Form “A” in triplicate to the Pension Disbursement Authority.
The Pension Disbursement Authority is required to return the duly certified duplicate of the nomination to the retiree within thirty days of receipt of the nomination. The triplicate copy should be sent to the accountant of the department from where the retiree retired while the original of the appointment should be registered with the PDA.
If pension arrears accrue after the death of a pensioner, such pension arrears shall be paid to the person in whose favor an appointment under the Pension Arrears (Appointment) Payment Rules 1983 exists.
Retiree grievances
Representations have been received by the Department of Pensions and Pensioners Welfare from some pensioner/retiree associations that quite often when retirees submit their applications to the Pension Disbursement Authority (PDA) , bank staff are reluctant to accept these appointments because they are unfamiliar with the rules.
Also, in the event that a nomination is accepted by the bank, the pensioner is unaware of its safekeeping and retrieval in case of need because he is not sure that the nomination has been introduced. in the Bank’s system.
In most cases, the problem of non-availability of nominations may be due to poor management of nominations by the Banks, as the Banks may not maintain a proper record of nominations.
The problem may also arise if the nomination submitted at the time of retirement becomes invalid due to the death of the candidate before the retiree or for any other reason and the retiree fails to submit a new nomination to the Bank on Form A or to staff form the bank. Branches do not accept the nomination out of ignorance.