PENSION SCHEME FOR INFORMAL WORKERS HITS STAGNATION POINT

NEW DELHI: The marquee contributory pension scheme for informal sector workers is stagnating, with the number of people joining the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-dhan (PM-SYM) scheme hitting an alltime low.

Fresh enrolment in PM-SYM in the first four months of the current financial year is a mere 15,283 or just 3,821 per month. In July, the number was 3,176, lower than the monthly average this fiscal. In the first 24 days of August, fresh registration by informal sector workers in PM-SYM is a mere 1,223, according to official data of the ministry of labour and employment.

There was an average enrolment of 10,843 per month in PM-SYM in FY21 and at least 115,000 in FY20, according to data available publicly on the ministry’s website.

The stagnation came as workers in the informal sector faced income and job loss, following the two waves of the pandemic that ravaged the country.

“The enrolment in recent months has been very low. If you look at the first year of its existence (2018-19), about 2.9 million people came on board. The numbers fell subsequently. However, in 2021-22 the registration is almost at a standstill,” said a government official who did not want to be named. Cumulatively, so far 4.51 million informal workers have been enrolled since the scheme was rolled out in 2018-19. The contributory pension scheme, billed as a key social security initiative, caters to unorganized sector workers who are in the 18-40 age group and are earning less than ₹15,000 per month. Under it, a worker pays a monthly contribution between ₹55 and ₹200 and a matching contribution is offered by the government.