Name the pension scheme that seeks to ensure old age protection for unorganised workers.
- (a)Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojna
- (b)Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan
- (c)Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bhima Yojna
- (d)Atal Pension Yojana
Answer
Why
Correct — B. Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PM-SYM) is the pension scheme written specifically for unorganised workers — street vendors, head loaders, rickshaw pullers, domestic workers and the like.
It is voluntary and contributory. A worker aged 18 to 40 earning up to ₹15,000 a month pays a monthly instalment, the Centre matches it rupee for rupee, and an assured pension of ₹3,000 a month begins at 60.
Why the others are wrong
- (a)Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojna — Mudra Yojana refinances collateral-free loans to non-corporate, non-farm micro enterprises through banks and other lenders. It is credit for a business, with nothing about old age.
- (c)Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bhima Yojna — Suraksha Bima Yojana is an accident cover, paying out on accidental death or permanent disability against an annual premium. Insurance against an event, not an income after 60.
- (d)Atal Pension Yojana — Atal Pension Yojana is a real pension scheme, but it is open to account holders at large and runs under PFRDA, paying a guaranteed ₹1,000 to ₹5,000 a month. The unorganised-worker framing is PM-SYM's own eligibility.
Concept
Social security for the unorganised sector is delivered through several small, separately named schemes rather than one statute, and the question is whether you can tell them apart by what each promises.
PM-SYM promises old-age income: a defined ₹3,000 monthly pension from 60, funded half by the worker and half by the Centre, under the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
Its siblings promise other things — Jan Dhan a bank account, Suraksha Bima accident cover, Jeevan Jyoti life cover, Mudra a micro-loan. Match the promise in the stem to the scheme.
Atal Pension Yojana is the choice worth pausing on. It also serves informal-sector savers, and it too ends in a monthly pension.
The difference the key leans on is that PM-SYM is defined by the worker's category and carries a matching government contribution, while APY is a PFRDA product open to account holders generally.
Key facts
- PM-SYM gives an assured pension of ₹3,000 a month from the age of 60.
- Entry is open to unorganised workers aged 18 to 40 with monthly income up to ₹15,000.
- The Central Government matches the subscriber's contribution rupee for rupee.
- The scheme runs under the Ministry of Labour and Employment, with LIC as the fund manager.
Study next
Common traps
- Choosing Atal Pension Yojana because it is the better-known pension brand
- Reading Suraksha Bima as a pension because both pay money at a later date
Unorganised-sector welfare is a recurring General Awareness slot.
13 Sep 2024, 16:00, General Awareness Q.24 asks which scheme for unorganised workers was launched on 26 August 2021, and 13 Sep 2024, 12:30, General Awareness Q.19 asks who chairs PFRDA, the regulator behind Atal Pension Yojana.
Related PYQs
No directly related past PYQ was found.