Pension Adalats: Govt Plans To Hold More Sessions To Redress Long-Pending Grievances

Pension Adalats (courts) are held to resolve retirees’ pension-related complaints on the spot. In 2024, these adalats redressed around 82 per cent of the complaints. According to the government data, a total of 6,964 pension-related grievances were taken up in these adalats over the last five years, of which 4,944 (around 71 per cent) were resolved on the spot.

These adalats are designed to fast-track the resolution of pension-related grievances of government employees. While few departments like railways, postal services, and defence have been conducting these for over a decade, the government extended this initiative to other departments in 2017. The aim is to provide quick relief for pensioners and help them avoid litigation and running around for pension matters.

In a written reply in Lok Sabha on April 2, Jitendra Singh, Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, provided the complaint data for over five years.

To a question whether the government plans to organise more such adalats to resolve more complaints, the minister affirmed. The reply read, “The Government intends to organise additional Pension Adalats to redress longstanding pension-related grievances in the future”.

Note that these adalats are held usually twice a year, in January and July. So far, 12 pension adalats have been held, including one in 2025, where 192 cases were taken up and 151 were resolved.

Pension Adalats And How Do They Work?

The pension provides financial security to retire, but when there is a delay or some other issue, it becomes a hassle for senior citizens to run from pillar to post, spending time and effort.

To address this issue, the DoPPW has implemented several initiatives. These include spreading pension-related information through social media, reports, and its website. The departments also conduct pre-retirement counselling workshops to inform retiring employees about pension-related procedures, paperwork, portals, and apps, enabling them to conveniently settle their issues, if arise.

Under the pension adalat initiative, all the stakeholders, including representatives from ministries, departments, Central Pension Accounting Office (CPAO), banks, and others, relating to a complaint are invited to a common platform to offer grievance redressal on the spot. These adalats provide the aggrieved person with a platform to be heard and get the issue resolved without resorting to litigation, which is a lengthy and tiresome process.

According to the government statement, “The objective of the Pension Adalat is to provide on-the-spot resolution of unresolved and chronic grievances in CPENGRAMS. After giving advance notice to all the stakeholders, including the Head of Office (HOO), Pay and Account Office (PAO), Central Pension Accounting Office (CPAO), Pension Disbursing Bank, etc., and representative of the pensioner is called on a common platform for resolution of the grievances across the table”.

How To Participate:

To participate in grievance redressal in pension adalat, the process is simple.

• According to the DoPPW office memorandum, dated March 25, 2011, “The date, time, and venue, of these adalats are fixed by the concerned organisation. These details, along with the name of the officer, are notified in the print and visual media and other means. The grievance can be sent to the officer named in the notification. The DoPPW has stipulated that the notification should be issued at least ‘four months in advance’ from the proposed date of adalat"

• An aggrieved pensioner can send their grievance to the officer within 90 days from the notification date

• The concerned officer then examines the grievance, and submits the necessary report to the concerned stakeholders at least two weeks before the adalat so they have all the details to provide the solution

These adalats are usually held at places with a large number of pensioners, making it convenient for pensioners to attend.