Here, are you trying to envision spending a lifetime moving back and forth to the factory and office for their work, only to retire with ₹1,000-odd pension with which one can hardly meet a week’s essentials against rising price levels? For millions of EPS-95 pensioners, such foods for thought unleashed a surge of nationwide fury. But in October 2025, the militant rallies flared up a transformative heat around the long-awaited pension hike to ₹7,500 plus DA. This is a victory on so many fronts. It is one for respectability to India and bare acknowledgment for an unsung workforce.
Origin Of A Raw Deal
EPS-95 started in 1995 with Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) for the security of private-sector workers. The employers contribute 8.33% of wages (limited to ₹15,000) to the pension pool, with the government providing a 1.16% share. Yet, the chirpy minimum pension amount of ₹1,000 stood frozen since 2014 and was all but worth nothing with 5.5% inflation per annum washing it away. Pensions, sometimes even falling short of ₹1,500, would somehow keep these people afloat, with all else going for healthcare and groceries and slowly further degrading what little savings these little pensions offered. More than 3.66 million held on to this lifeline, of which 2.06 million subsisted on a state subsidy. With the defined-benefit character of the scheme posed a drain on the EPFO finances, it sharpened the debate on sustainability.
Protests That Shook the System
October 2025 became a month of solidarity. Thousands marched from Delhi to Kerala besieging the EPFO headquarters, carrying banners calling for ₹7,500 as time-wage, full DA restoration, and medical benefits. The EPS-95 National Agitation Committee had also helped issue in a huge rally after years from 15 states. Hunger strikes were to follow, enforcing pleas ignored for so long. Parliamentary committees led by BJP MP Basavaraj Bommai lambasted the “unlivable” sum and requested it to be reviewed most urgently by a third party by the end of the year. The unions had made their case regarding actuarial feasibility and forced the issue before the Central Board of Trustees (CBT). Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya assured of a cabinet review, but the delegates on the roads were demanding action now.
Bangaluru Eyed A breakthrough
The meeting dated October 10-11 at Bengaluru saw the dam breakers. Subsequent to the May tentative nod, the board gave its approval to a ₹7,500 floor with immediate effect, translating to an explosive 650% increase. DA linkage is in place to curb inflation, auto-adjusting through the CPI. There is thus no need to present fresh claims; the EPFO maps Aadhaar banks for credits. This Diwali gift is for 65 million members, prioritizing core EPS-95 beneficiaries over Supreme Court opt-ins. Digital upgrades within EPFO 3.0-real-time tracking and UPI-driven withdrawals-make things easier.
Ripples Of Relief And Reform
With this surge, purchasing power is restored—₹1,000 in 2014 would be worth ₹1,800 today; ₹7,500 would build a buffer against expenses on medicines and food. It’s a relief for families, who then try to reduce distress to the elderly. EPFO’s corpus, consequently swelling with increased contribution, looks now at its long-term viability. But challenges remain: widow pensions are not settled and the full restoration of DA is still pending. With promises from the protesting parties to fight the cause further.
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