Centre Forms High-Level Pension Forum To Create Unified Regulatory Framework

The government has established a high-level forum (the Forum for Regulatory Coordination and Development of Pension Products) to streamline India’s fragmented pension system and expand coverage beyond the current 12% of the workforce under formal schemes.

The forum will be chaired by the Secretary of the Department of Financial Services and will include senior officials from key ministries. Announced in the Union Budget, the forum will coordinate regulation, promote new products, and improve retirement coverage in the sector. According to the finance ministry, the forum will work on harmonising regulatory practices, investment standards, consumer protection, and grievance redressal, while encouraging international best practices. The move comes amid demographic shifts, with projections that by 2050, one in five Indians will be over the age of 60, highlighting the need for inclusive pension reforms.

The members of the forum will also include the heads of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), and the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).