Unmarried, widowed or divorced daughter of deceased govt employees entitled to family pension under some conditions: Centre

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Unmarried, widowed or divorced daughters of deceased government employees are entitled to family pension provided they meet certain prescribed conditions, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

Various provisions have been incorporated in the Central Civil Service (Pension) Rules, 2021, notified by the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare (DoPPW), and in the office memorandum dated October 26, 2022 issued subsequently to ensure that a divorced/widowed daughter of a deceased government employee or pensioner gets family pension on her turn, Union Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a written reply.

The same provisions are provided under separate rules for railway and defence employees and pensioners, he said.

In terms of these rules, where a deceased government employee or pensioner is not survived by a spouse or son eligible for family pension or if they die or cease to fulfil the eligibility conditions for family pension, the family pension shall be granted or continued to be payable to an unmarried or widowed or divorced daughter, the minister said, and mentioned other conditions for such pensions.

The pension will be continued until "she gets married or is remarried or until she starts earning her livelihood, whichever is the earliest, subject to the conditions like the unmarried or widowed or divorced daughter was dependent on her parent or parents when he or she or they were alive", the minister said.

"Further, in the case of a widowed daughter, the death of her husband and in the case of a divorced daughter, her divorce took place or the divorce proceedings filed in a competent court during the lifetime of the government servant or pensioner or his or her spouse," Singh said.