Family pension: Women working for the government are now able to choose their children above their husband.

On Sunday, the Department of Pensions and Pensioners’ Welfare (DoPPW) announced that women who work for the government and retire have the option to choose their children to get a family pension instead of their spouse.

According to a statement from the DoPPW, the family pension was previously only available to the children and the surviving spouse. Other family members were only eligible once the husband passed away. 

According to PTI, MoS for Personnel Jitendra Singh stated, “The DoPPW has introduced an amendment to the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 2021, allowing female government employees or pensioners to grant family pension to their eligible child/children after their own demise, in place of their spouse.”

According to the minister, the modification would deal with charges filed under the Indian Penal Code, the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, or the Dowry Prohibition Act, or in circumstances where marital disagreement results in divorce procedures.

Singh went on to say that the change is consistent with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s aim of granting women employees in all sectors of the economy equitable and lawful rights.

“In a path-breaking decision with far-reaching socio-economic impact and in keeping with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policy to provide equitable rights to women, the government has amended the long-standing established rule, thereby granting the woman employee the right to nominate her son or daughter for family pension, instead of her husband as has been the practice so far.” According to the statement,

Procedure 

The female government employee or pensioner must make a written request to the concerned head of office saying that in the case of her death during the current processes, her qualifying child/children should be given a family pension before her spouse, according to the DoPPW.

“If the female government servant or pensioner passes away during the proceedings, the family pension will be disbursed accordingly,” the statement went on to say.

If a woman employee is survived by a widower who does not have any qualified children, the widower will get the family pension, according to the statement.

If the widower is the guardian of a minor child or a kid with a mental disability, the family pension will be paid to him for the duration of his guardianship. Once the kid reaches majority and continues eligible for the family pension, it will be paid directly to the youngster.

The statement noted that if the deceased female government official or pensioner is survived by a widower and children who have reached the age of majority but are still entitled for a family pension, the family pension will be paid to those children.

The minister stated that the government took this initiative in response to several requests from women officials and pensioners to be able to nominate children before the spouse in cases where divorce proceedings or domestic violence cases against the spouse were pending.