Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority(PFRDA) - Financial Institutions, Financial Markets a | Financial Markets and Institutions - B Com PDF Download

The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) is the pension regulator of India which was established by Government of India on August 23, 2003 and was authorized by Ministry of Finance, Department of Financial Services. Upon introduction of the PFRDA Bill by the Government of India in the Parliament of India and the subsequent passage of the PFRDA Actin 2013, the Authority became a Central Autonomous Body. Like other financial sector regulators namely Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDAI) and Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), PFRDA is a quasi government organization having executive, legislative and judicial powers. PFRDA promotes old age income security by establishing, developing and regulating pension funds and protects the interests of subscribers to schemes of pension funds and related matters. Currently, PFRDA is regulating and administering the National Pension System (NPS) along with administering the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) which is a defined benefits pension scheme for the unorganized sector, guaranteed by the Government of India. PFRDA is responsible for appointment of various intermediate agencies such as Central Record Keeping Agency (CRA), Pension Fund Managers, Custodian, NPS Trustee Bank, etc.

Structure 

The Authority consists of a Chairperson and not more than five members, of whom at least three shall be whole-time members, to be appointed by the Central Government.

Current members 

1. Hemant Contractor, Chairman

2. Dr. B.S.Bhandari, Whole-Time Member(Economics)

3. Sh. Pradeep Chaddah,Whole-Time Member(Law)

4. Sh. Suchindra Misra, Part-Time Member

5. Ms. Annie George Mathew, Part-Time Member

6. Ms. Vandana Sharma, Part-Time Member

History 

PFRDA has set up a Trust under the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 to oversee the functions of the Pension Fund Managers (PFMs). The NPS Trust is composed of members representing diverse fields and brings wide range of talent to the regulatory framework. The Union Parliament passed the IPRDA [Interim Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority] Bill in February 2003 as a Budget Announcement, approved by the then President of India, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. It was meant to be in place till the final and fool-proof system was prepared, re-approved, and implemented in a way acceptable to all political parties in India, including the opposition. Tamil Nadu became the first state to implement NPS for its newly appointed employees from the financial year 2003–04, under the Chief Ministership of Jayalalitha.

On 18 September 2013, the President, Pranab Mukherjee, gave his assent to Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill of 2013, which was passed in the Monsoon Session of Parliament on 4 September 2013 in the Lok Sabha and 6 September 2013 in the Rajya Sabha, to make it a Permanent Act. This improved, foolproof and re-approved Bill, with the acceptance of all political parties in India, has replaced the old and imperfect IPRDA Bill of 2003.^[4] The President of India is the guardian of the PFRDA, subject to his Financial Emergency Powers, as per the Articles of Indian Constitution. PFRDA now has Full Autonomy & functioning Independently from F.Y. 2014-15.

National Pension System 

National Pension System is a defined contributory pensions system introduced by Government of India. It is mandatory for all Central Government employees with effect from Jan 1 2004. It extends to all citizens of India including workers of the unorganized sector on a voluntary basis with effect from May 1, 2009. On October 29, 2015 the Reserve Bank of India allowed Non-Resident Indians (NRI) to subscribe to NPS.