JAMMU :The Jammu and Kashmir Government has sanctioned a one-time option for eligible government employees to shift from the Defined Contribution Pension Scheme (New Pension Scheme) to the Defined Pension Scheme (Old Pension Scheme), subject to fulfilment of prescribed conditions.
The Finance Department, through Government Order No. 305-F of 2026 dated September 23, 2026, issued the order following approval accorded by the Council of Ministers vide Decision No. 129/11/2026 dated September 10, 2026.
The benefit will be available to those Government employees of Jammu and Kashmir who were appointed against posts or vacancies advertised/notified for recruitment or appointment before December 24, 2009, when the New Pension Scheme was notified in J&K through SRO-400, and who subsequently joined government service on or after January 1, 2010 and are presently covered under NPS.
The order stated that the decision has been taken on the analogy of the Government of India's Office Memorandum dated March 3, 2023, under which eligible Central Government employees were given a one-time option for coverage under the Old Pension Scheme.
The issue had also been examined by the J&K Finance Department following representations from employees and directions in various court cases seeking similar treatment. The matter was taken up with the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare. The latter clarified that its instructions were not automatically applicable to employees of States/UTs and that the concerned Government had to decide their applicability.
Following inter-departmental consultations with the General Administration Department, Department of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs and ARI & Trainings Department, the proposal was placed before the Council of Ministers, which approved it on September 10, 2026.
As per the Government Order, the eligible employees will have to exercise the option within three months from the date of issuance of the order. Employees who fail to exercise the option within the stipulated period will continue to remain under the NPS. The option, once exercised, will be final.
The option form has to be submitted to the concerned Drawing and Disbursing Officer (DDO), who will forward it to the Head of Department/Appointing Authority and subsequently to the concerned Administrative Department. The Administrative Department will scrutinise each case and determine eligibility under the prescribed conditions.
Once an employee is brought under the OPS, his or her NPS account will be closed from the first day of the month following the month in which the order for OPS coverage is issued. The employee will thereafter be required to subscribe to the General Provident Fund (GPF).
The Government has also prescribed a mechanism for adjustment of the accumulated corpus in the NPS account. The employee's contribution will be adjusted towards the GPF account, while the Government contribution and appreciation in investment value will be dealt with under the prescribed accounting heads.
The entire exercise, from exercising the option to closure of the NPS account, is required to be completed within 120 days from the date of issuance of the order by the concerned Administrative Department.
The Finance Department has further made it clear that in case of any doubt regarding whether a particular post was advertised or an appointment made within the ambit of the order, the matter will be referred to the Finance Department, whose decision will be final and binding.
The order also contains an option form requiring employees to furnish details including their name, date of birth, CPIS ID, PRAN number, date of joining government service, advertisement/notification details, selection list, appointment order, post held and promotion details. Copies of the relevant advertisement/notification, selection list, appointment order, PRAN card and attested service book have to be enclosed with the application.
According to the annexure, the option form is to be submitted through proper channel on or before December 28, 2026.