Financial Services Department Secretary M. Nagaraju said on Tuesday that the ₹15,000 per month salary threshold for mandatory pensions needs to be reconsidered to provide social security to the public. Nagaraju said it's very unfortunate that some people, especially those working in the private sector, who earn more than ₹15,000 per month, lack any pension coverage and become dependent on their children as they age.

Nagraju explained that registration in the EPF (Employees' Provident Fund) system is mandatory for those earning less than ₹15,000 per month, but it's not mandatory for those earning more than ₹15,000. The official said, "We need to consider this... how can we secure the future of those who earn a little more so that they have a secure future and are not dependent on their children in their old age."

APY beneficiaries exceed 8 crore
Speaking at the CII Finance Summit here, Nagaraju described this as an anomaly. It deviates from the government's goal of bringing the maximum number of people under pension schemes. Nagaraju said that the number of beneficiaries of the government-backed Atal Pension Yojana has reached 83 million, and 48% of these are women. He said that the government's efforts to bring more and more people, including those in the unorganized sector, under social security measures will continue in the future.

The Biggest Challenge Facing Gen Z
At the same event, Swaminathan S. Iyer, Member (Life Insurance) of the insurance regulator IRDA, said that amid rising consumer demand, it is a challenge to ensure that the younger generation has sufficient funds when they retire in 30 years. He said that with increasing consumerism, what can we do today to ensure that they (Gen Z) have sufficient funds when they retire in 30 years? This is the challenge facing all of us.

Iyer stated that more than two-thirds of Indians do not have life insurance. He added that the purpose of opening the insurance sector to the private sector 25 years ago was to make the sector more prosperous. He lamented that more than 85 percent of insurance companies' business comes from urban areas, and coverage in remote areas is inadequate.

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