New Delhi: The Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare (DoPPW), under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, has issued an Office Memorandum to clarify the applicability of gratuity rules for Central Government servants covered under the National Pension System (NPS) Rules, 2021.
Dated October 24, 2025, and signed by Dilip Kumar Sahu, Under Secretary to the Govt. of India, this memorandum addresses queries and applications received by the department regarding the payment of gratuity.
Background of the Clarification
The DoPPW had previously issued OM No. 28/03/2024-P&PW(B)/Gratuity/9553 dated 30.05.2024, which enhanced the maximum limit of gratuity payable to central government civilian employees to Rs. 25 lakhs from the earlier Rs. 20 lakhs. This enhancement applies to employees covered under the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 2021, and the Central Civil Services (Payment of Gratuity under National Pension System) Rules, 2021.
However, subsequent references and RTI applications indicated a need for further clarity on the scope and applicability of these rules, especially concerning different types of organizations.
Key Clarifications from the Office Memorandum:
- Applicability of CCS (Pension) Rules: The Office Memorandum explicitly states that the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules are only applicable to societies, banks, port trusts, RBI, PSUs, autonomous bodies, Universities, State Governments, etc., if these organizations are governed under these specific rules. This means that organizations not explicitly governed by these Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules would have their own service conditions and gratuity provisions.
- Implication: This clarifies that the general enhancement of gratuity to Rs. 25 lakhs, while broadly applicable to Central Government civilian employees under the specified rules, does not automatically extend to all other bodies unless they are specifically brought under the purview of these rules.
- Role of DoPPW: The DoPPW is the nodal department responsible for formulating policies related to pension and other retirement benefits for Central Government civil employees. Therefore, any questions or clarifications regarding the applicability of these rules to organizations not mentioned in the specified list (like societies, banks, etc.) should be addressed to the concerned organization/concerned administrative Ministry/Department, rather than directly to DoPPW for policy interpretation on their specific applicability.
Wider Dissemination Requested
The DoPPW has requested that the contents of this Office Memorandum be given wide publicity and brought to the notice of all concerned. This move aims to ensure that all relevant Ministries, Departments, and organizations, as well as their employees, are aware of the exact scope and limitations of the gratuity rules under the NPS for Central Government servants.
This clarification is crucial for hundreds of thousands of government employees and organizations to understand their gratuity entitlements and the correct channels for addressing policy-related queries.
