Risk and Return Analysis of National Pension Scheme for Retirement Planning
*CA. Amit Nath is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. He can be reached at ca.amitnath@gmail.com.
#Dr. Kavita Chordiya and #Dr. Purna Prasad Arcot are academicians and researchers in financial planning and portfolio economics.
Authors can be reached at eboard@icai.in.
1. Introduction & Evolution of NPS
An individual always saves a portion of his earnings for his future and wants to invest his money in a profitable scheme that would fetch good returns to secure his life after retirement as he wants both good corpus and regular income to live a smooth life after his retirement. So, one requires good retirement planning. An individual always, therefore, prefers a government job that not only gives job security but also a guaranteed pension after retirement. The private companies, therefore, pay handsome salaries and have introduced many retirement benefits to attract employees.
On 1 April 2004, the Government of India stopped the pensions for all its employees who joined the government organisations after 1 April 2004 and initiated NPS which was later made available for all Indian Individual citizens from 2009 onwards. Investors between the ages of 18 years to 75 years can invest in this scheme. National Pension Scheme is a retirement planning scheme which is a pension system where the contribution is being made voluntarily by Indian citizens. Where the contribution towards NPS is mandatory for all government employees, it is optional for other individuals (whether salaried person or self-employed person).
Here, an employee and his employer both can contribute to his retirement account. It is regulated by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). It can be opened either physical mode through bank or online mode.
2. Investment Choices, Account Tiers & Fund Managers
2.1 Active Choice (Asset Classes E, C, G, A)
The individual can opt for investment either fully or in the mixture in four types of investment schemes which are being offered by the pension fund managers. These are called active choice which is:
- Scheme E (Equity): Where a maximum of 75% can be invested in stocks and risk is high.
- Scheme C (Corporate Debt): Where a maximum of 100% can be invested in high-quality corporate bonds and risk is Moderate.
- Scheme G (Government Bonds): Where a maximum of 100% can be invested and risk is Low.
- Scheme A (Alternative Investment): Like real estates, piece of art, where a maximum of 5% can be invested and risk is very High.
After the age of 50 years, the equity allocation starts to reduce and after the age of 60 years, the subscriber cannot have more than 50% of his portfolio into an equity fund.
2.2 Auto Choice (Lifecycle Funds: LC75, LC50, LC30)
Also, the subscriber can choose the default scheme (auto choice), which is classified as follows:
- LC75 – Aggressive Lifecycle Fund: Where a maximum of 75% can be invested in stocks up to the maximum age of 35.
- LC50 – Moderate Lifecycle Fund: Where a maximum of 50% can be invested in stocks up to the maximum age of 35.
- LC30 – Conservative Lifecycle Fund: Where a maximum of 25% can be invested in stocks up to the maximum age of 35.
After the age of 35, the subscriber’s equity and corporate debt allocation start to reduce while allocation to government debt securities increases.
2.3 Registered Pension Fund Managers
At present, there are 7 pension fund managers in the country out of which anyone can be chosen by the investors:
- UTI Retirement Solutions Limited.
- SBI Pension Funds Private Limited.
- LIC Pension Fund.
- ICICI Prudential Pension Funds Management Company Limited.
- Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Limited.
- Aditya Birla Sun Life Pension Management Limited.
- HDFC Pension Management Company Limited.
The pension fund manager (only once in a year) and types of investment (four times in a year) can be changed any time in a year.
2.4 Tier I vs Tier II Account Structure
Tier I Account (Retirement Pension Account)
Meant for retirement savings. Account opening charge ranges from Rs. 200 (minimum) to Rs. 400 (maximum). Minimum one contribution per year of at least Rs. 500 per transaction and Rs. 1,000 p.a., with no upper investment ceiling.
Lock-in & Withdrawal at Age 60: Subscriber can withdraw up to 60% of the corpus in a lump sum. The remaining 40% must be invested into an immediate annuity plan. If the total corpus is ≤ Rs. 5 lakh, 100% lump-sum withdrawal is permitted.
Premature Exit (before 60): Allowed only after 10 years of account opening; subscriber can withdraw only 20% in lump sum, and 80% must be invested in annuity. If corpus is ≤ Rs. 2.5 lakh, 100% lump sum is permitted. All tax benefits apply to Tier I only.
Tier II Account (Voluntary Savings Facility)
Only Tier 1 members are allowed to open this account. Investors can choose not to invest in any given year.
No Lock-in Period: Subscribers can deposit and withdraw funds anytime without restriction or exit load.
Operates identically to an open-ended mutual fund with zero distributor commission and negligible fund management charges. However, no tax deductions apply to Tier II contributions.
3. Statement of Problem & Research Objectives
Statement of Problem: Among many retirement schemes available in the market, NPS is one of them. But like any other securities, it has also its own risks and returns. So, the problem lies in whether the individuals should invest or not in this scheme for better returns and a bright future.
Research Objectives:
- The main objective of this study is to identify the Return and risk involved in investments in NPS and whether it is a safe retirement scheme for Indian citizens.
- To find out the best debt equity mix of investment in NPS in the age group of 40-50.
- To find out the oldest fund manager.
- To know which fund manager has maximum subscribers.
- To find out the fund manager which gives the highest return in the corporate bond scheme, government bond scheme and equity scheme of Tier I.
- To analyse the best fund manager to invest in.
4. Comprehensive Review of Literature
Aruna Kapoor (2016)
Conducted a study using primary and secondary data; the analysis showed that NPS provides transparency and a reasonable return to the investors. They provided suggestions to investors, asset management companies, and the government. The conclusion of their study shows that NPS is the most low-cost pension plan in India.
Ananth S. and Balanaga Gurunathan K. (2016)
Studied three years of data of NPS scheme for their research study. The Sharpe Index, Treynor Index, and Jensen Alpha are used to measure the comparative performance of the NPS scheme. The comparison of Tier-I and Tier-II of NPS schemes is also done in this study. The result showed that variances are existing in the return of the different schemes of Tier-I and Tier-II. The study suggested more government incentives and minimum pension support for the investors.
Bijaya Kumar Barik (2015)
Scrutinized the mutual fund pension schemes with the National Pension Scheme-citizen model. He studied various retirement fund schemes and estimated the returns on mutual fund pension schemes and National Pension Scheme.
Neeti Hooda and Dr. Kuldip Singh Chhikara (2018)
Concluded that the role of NPS in the economy and capital market can be scrutinised in terms of accumulation of institutional capital, support to improve financial market research, development of the capital market through the creation of demand for financial instruments, risk rating standard, corporate governance, etc. which not only gives momentum to growth but also lead towards economic development of the country. It has been perceived from the study that the Indian debt market showed a continued deterioration in terms of investment purpose which was only 3.2% in 2007, in GDP terms but gained a lead with the introduction of pension reforms i.e., NPS.
Sukhen Kali and Subrata Jana (2017)
Conducted a study to evaluate the old pension scheme and new pension schemes in India. The old pension and new pension periods data were collected for 12 years. They used a t-test to compare the old pension and NPS and concluded that the employee benefited more from the NPS.
Dr. Kamnath Vani and Dr. Patil Roopali (2017)
Used a case study method for their research paper. A comparison of NPS and other Investment Schemes has been conducted for this study. Various age groups of investors (25-55 years), periods of investment, government taxation policies, and processing fees are used for this study. The finding shows that NPS is an exceptional pension policy that provides multiple benefits and assures market-linked returns to the investors.
Anita and Pankaj Kumar (2014)
Investigated the important features of this newly declared pension scheme (NPS Swavalamban). It also pointed out the difficulties that the scheme is facing.
Subhro Sen Gupta, Neha Gupta and Komal Garg (2017)
Explored that there is a significant relationship between equities, corporate, and government securities within the New Pension Scheme. In their paper, they used 5 years of secondary data collected from the NPS website. The rank correlation method is used for assessing the relative performance of corporate bonds, equity, and government security within SBIPF, LICPF, and UTRSL in Tier-I and Tier-II. The conclusion of the study is investors have more faith in government bonds irrespective of the NPS scheme in Tier I and Tier II.
Dr. Alpa A Thaker, Dr. Mahendra H. Maisuria, and Dr. Prashant T. Jariwala (2018)
Analysed the Tier I-NPS performance by using five years of data across 7 National Pension Schemes. Analytical tools like mean, standard deviation, and ANOVA were deployed. Levene Statistics was used to test homogeneity of variances among the different schemes of Tier-I. It found that lack of awareness and low commission structure for advisory kept many investors away from NPS. Recommended that for long-term horizons, NPS may offer 12% to 15% return and is highly advantageous for early-age investors.
Justice B.N. Srikrishna (2013) – FSLRC
Suggested that to provide for various protections against misleading conduct by sales agents, the PFRDA is required to consider the Indian Financial Code as a benchmark standard. The suitability study needs to be conducted by the PFRDA before embarking on a full-fledged policy initiative at improving the distribution of the NPS.
Ayanendu Sanyal, K. Gayithri, and S. Erappa (2011)
Stated that pension reforms in India in the last decade have seen three major initiatives – a paradigmatic shift in the civil servants’ pension scheme, the National Pension Scheme for all citizens, and the New Pension System Lite for the frugally underprivileged sections with small savings. The NPS has seen a lukewarm response so far, with a majority of subscribers being central and state government employees, for whom the scheme is mandatory. An analysis of the auto choice option under the NPS and the demographic transition reveals potential future imbalances in the investment structure among the asset classes. Moreover, the NPS does not even guarantee a minimum pension, thus defeating its “welfare” orientation.
Dr. Mahesh Kumar Kurmi, Dr. Baneswar Kapasi, and Mr. Ranjit Kumar Paswan (2020)
Described in their study the comparative performance of various schemes of NPS from the viewpoint of its risk and return. The study uses secondary data from 2015 to 2020 and discloses that NPS is performing well in comparison to the stock market at least during this study period. Besides, the performance of funds under Tier II is best than funds under Tier-I. However, the performance of various funds and fund managers under the same Tier is closely homogeneous.
5. Statutory Tax Architecture & Exemptions
“NPS is a quasi-EET instrument in India where the investment attracts exemption from taxes, the income accrued on the investment is exempt from taxes and finally, at maturity, 60% of the corpus is tax-exempt.”
Deduction from gross total income limited to 10% of basic salary + DA for salaried individuals, and 20% of gross total income for self-employed individuals, capped at Rs. 1.5 lakh under Section 80CCE.
Exclusive additional tax deduction of up to Rs. 50,000 over and above the Rs. 1.5 lakh Section 80CCE ceiling, providing total deductions of up to Rs. 2.0 lakh.
Employer contribution deductible up to 10% of salary (14% for Central Government employees). Employer contribution exceeding Rs. 7.5 lakh across PF, NPS, and superannuation is taxable under Section 17(1)(viii). Available under the new tax regime.
Employer’s contribution towards NPS can be claimed as a deductible business expense under “Profits and gains from business and profession” up to 10% of employee salary (Basic + DA).
Maturity Taxation & Annuity Streams
NPS is a quasi-EET instrument in India where the investment attracts exemption from taxes, the income accrued on the investment is exempt from taxes and finally, at maturity, 60% of the corpus is tax-exempt, and the remaining 40% which has to be compulsorily used to purchase an annuity is also tax exempt but the annuity income earned thereof will be taxable as “Income from other sources” as per income tax slab rates prevailing at the time of retirement. In case of pre-mature exit (before 60 years of age) where you can withdraw only 20% of the corpus, that 20% amount will not be taxable, and the remaining 80% which has to be compulsorily used to purchase an annuity, the annuity income earned thereof will be taxable.
Risks and Cons Attached with NPS
- Liquidity Risk: The lock-in period is too long which discourages young investors to invest in. It is not possible to withdraw the amount before the age of 60 except in certain emergency conditions where the full amount cannot be withdrawn.
- Equity Cap Limitation: The maximum ceiling limit of only 75% investment in equity discourages many aggressive investors to invest in who are ready to take risks.
- Mandatory Annuity Purchase: 40% of the maturity amount needs to be compulsorily invested in annuity. So, if one needs a complete 100% lump sum amount, he cannot withdraw the same. Also, in premature exit, one can withdraw only 20%, and the remaining 80% needs to be compulsorily invested in annuity. So, if anyone wants to invest this 40% maturity amount in some other profitable schemes of his/her own choice, he/she can’t do so.
- Subdued Annuity Returns: The annuities are giving very less returns (normally 5%-6%) after retirement and pension income is also taxable. This makes it a less profitable scheme.
- Market Volatility Exposure: As it is linked with equity, the returns are not sure. At the time of withdrawal, if the market crashes, then the money invested in equity may end in a great loss.
- Allocation Decision Complexity: The decision of choosing the best fund manager and the best mixture of investment is a big challenge.
6. Comparative Empirical Analysis Across Schemes (E, C, G, A)
6.1 Tier-I Scheme E (Equity) Performance Analysis
| Table 1: Tier-I Scheme E (Equity) Returns & Metrics across Pension Fund Managers (as on 09/07/2021) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | Aditya Birla Sun Life | HDFC Pension | ICICI Pru Pension | Kotak Mahindra | LIC Pension | SBI Pension | UTI Retirement | Benchmark |
| Inception Date | 9-May-17 | 1-Aug-13 | 18-May-09 | 15-May-09 | 23-Jul-13 | 15-May-09 | 21-May-09 | 09/07/2021 |
| AUM (Rs Crs) | 135.83 | 8,282.40 | 3,415.01 | 672.89 | 1,686.02 | 6,258.54 | 974.09 | — |
| Subscribers | 16,410 | 816,002 | 365,241 | 51,922 | 206,913 | 832,560 | 91,015 | — |
| NAV | 16.7647 | 31.2529 | 41.1918 | 37.9495 | 26.0821 | 34.2281 | 40.7394 | — |
| Returns 1 Year | 41.41% | 48.11% | 49.22% | 46.18% | 49.33% | 44.38% | 49.58% | 48.85% |
| Returns 3 Years | 12.42% | 14.19% | 13.55% | 14.29% | 12.78% | 12.25% | 12.98% | 14.31% |
| Returns 5 Years | NA | 15.01% | 13.67% | 13.70% | 12.45% | 13.13% | 13.52% | 14.80% |
| Returns 7 Years | NA | 12.52% | 11.66% | 11.76% | 10.68% | 11.33% | 12.06% | 12.26% |
| Returns 10 Years | NA | NA | 11.88% | 11.73% | NA | 11.50% | 11.62% | 11.72% |
| Returns Inception | 13.19% | 15.43% | 12.36% | 11.59% | 12.79% | 10.65% | 12.26% | — |
Sources: Published by NPS Trust
6.2 Tier-I Scheme C (Corporate Bonds) Performance Analysis
| Table 2: Tier-I Scheme C (Corporate Bonds) Returns & Metrics (as on 09/07/2021) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | Aditya Birla Sun Life | HDFC Pension | ICICI Pru Pension | Kotak Mahindra | LIC Pension | SBI Pension | UTI Retirement | Benchmark |
| Inception Date | 9-May-17 | 1-Aug-13 | 18-May-09 | 15-May-09 | 23-Jul-13 | 15-May-09 | 21-May-09 | 09/07/2021 |
| AUM (Rs Crs) | 59.45 | 3724.96 | 1780.42 | 335.09 | 937.96 | 3495.67 | 491.14 | — |
| Subscribers | 16,211 | 805,000 | 363,685 | 51,195 | 207,163 | 829,876 | 90,186 | — |
| NAV | 14.2796 | 21.9007 | 33.3072 | 32.0209 | 21.6255 | 33.4514 | 29.7066 | — |
| Returns 1 Year | 6.24% | 7.10% | 6.77% | 5.68% | 6.50% | 6.39% | 5.41% | 8.77% |
| Returns 3 Years | 10.61% | 11.16% | 10.66% | 9.40% | 10.91% | 10.79% | 10.13% | 11.66% |
| Returns 5 Years | NA | 9.50% | 9.30% | 8.52% | 9.08% | 9.27% | 8.78% | 9.56% |
| Returns 7 Years | NA | 10.12% | 10.11% | 9.43% | 9.86% | 9.89% | 9.53% | 10.20% |
| Returns 10 Years | NA | NA | 10.47% | 9.98% | NA | 10.29% | 9.95% | 10.12% |
| Returns Inception | 8.92% | 10.37% | 10.41% | 10.04% | 10.16% | 10.44% | 9.38% | — |
Sources: Published by NPS Trust
6.3 Tier-I Scheme G (Government Securities) Performance Analysis
| Table 3: Tier-I Scheme G (Government Securities) Returns & Metrics (as on 09/07/2021) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | Aditya Birla Sun Life | HDFC Pension | ICICI Pru Pension | Kotak Mahindra | LIC Pension | SBI Pension | UTI Retirement | Benchmark |
| Inception Date | 9-May-17 | 1-Aug-13 | 18-May-09 | 15-May-09 | 23-Jul-13 | 15-May-09 | 21-May-09 | 09/07/2021 |
| AUM (Rs Crs) | 92.76 | 6006.96 | 2849.00 | 541.72 | 1621.00 | 6836.49 | 873.31 | — |
| Subscribers | 15,992 | 803,019 | 359,965 | 51,256 | 211,132 | 832,241 | 87,300 | — |
| NAV | 14.2228 | 21.3482 | 28.6270 | 28.3788 | 23.0097 | 30.8435 | 27.3471 | — |
| Returns 1 Year | 2.85% | 2.84% | 3.09% | 2.66% | 3.05% | 2.63% | 1.70% | 1.59% |
| Returns 3 Years | 11.39% | 11.69% | 11.34% | 11.42% | 12.35% | 11.37% | 10.79% | 10.73% |
| Returns 5 Years | NA | 9.15% | 9.03% | 8.99% | 10.17% | 9.07% | 8.41% | 8.32% |
| Returns 7 Years | NA | 10.20% | 10.14% | 10.11% | 10.88% | 10.25% | 9.64% | 9.52% |
| Returns 10 Years | NA | NA | 9.71% | 9.59% | NA | 9.63% | 9.22% | 9.04% |
| Returns Inception | 8.81% | 10.02% | 9.04% | 8.96% | 11.03% | 9.71% | 8.64% | — |
Sources: Published by NPS Trust
6.4 Tier-I Scheme A (Alternate Assets) Performance Analysis
| Table 4: Tier-I Scheme A (Alternate Assets) Returns & Metrics across Pension Fund Managers | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | Aditya Birla Sun Life | HDFC Pension | ICICI Pru Pension | Kotak Mahindra | LIC Pension | SBI Pension | UTI Retirement |
| Inception Date | 15-May-17 | 10-Oct-16 | 21-Nov-16 | 14-Oct-16 | 13-Oct-16 | 13-Oct-16 | 14-Oct-16 |
| AUM (Rs Crs) | 1.43 | 44.67 | 10.61 | 3.63 | 4.51 | 20.91 | 3.57 |
| Subscribers | 1,673 | 59,320 | 13,318 | 3,898 | 10,681 | 40,691 | 4,841 |
| NAV | 12.6779 | 14.6505 | 13.7071 | 13.9961 | 14.3454 | 15.5119 | 13.3267 |
| Returns 1 Year | 4.36% | 9.57% | 8.48% | 5.57% | 10.32% | 7.74% | 4.82% |
| Returns 3 Years | 5.50% | 9.22% | 7.64% | 8.95% | 8.71% | 11.19% | 5.96% |
| Returns 5 Years | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA |
| Returns 7 Years | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA |
| Returns 10 Years | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA | NA |
| Returns Inception | 5.88% | 8.38% | 7.04% | 7.36% | 7.91% | 9.71% | 6.25% |
Sources: Published by NPS Trust
7. Core Research Findings
- Oldest Fund Managers: The analysis of 7 fund managers showed that SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd, Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund Ltd., ICICI Prudential Pension Fund Management Co. Ltd. and UTI Retirement Solutions Ltd. are the oldest fund managers since 2009.
- Subscriber Leadership: SBI Pension Funds Pvt. Ltd is having maximum subscribers in all three schemes of Tier I.
- Corporate Bond Outperformance: In the case of the corporate bond scheme of Tier I, HDFC Pension Management Co. Ltd is having the highest returns for 1 year (7.10%), 3 years (11.16%), 5 years (9.50%), and 7 years (10.12%) period compared to other fund managers.
- Alternate Assets Leadership: In the case of Scheme A-Alternate assets of Tier I, HDFC Pension Management Co. Ltd. showed maximum subscribers (59,320), NAV (14.6505), and AUM (Rs. 44.67 crores) as compared with other fund managers.
- Best Overall Fund Manager: From the analysis of the 4 schemes, it is found that though the returns generated by all the fund managers are very close to each other, among all, the best fund manager can be taken as “HDFC Pension Management Company Limited” to invest in as it has given the higher returns on equity (which is the highest return generating asset class) from inception (15.43%) and is also consistent in giving returns since inception.
8. Conclusion & Policy Recommendations
“NPS is a low-risk investment with high returns compared to other retirement investments schemes as the portfolio is a mixture of various kinds of debt equity investments which are invested in high caps and are managed by some of the best fund managers of India and the charges of managing the fund are very low/negligible.”
It can be concluded that NPS is a low-risk investment with high returns compared to other retirement investments schemes as the portfolio is a mixture of various kinds of debt equity investments which are invested in high caps and are managed by some of the best fund managers of India and the charges of managing the fund are very low/negligible. So, it is a low-cost product. As the choice remains with the investor, he can choose less risky assets if he is very conservative and he has the flexibility to change his decisions every year.
But as it is said that if there is no risk, then there are no returns, so, high returns can be reaped only if one invests in risky assets like shares which has the ability to defeat inflation and so returns on NPS investments depend upon the amount of investments in equity which can for sure generate a high return as it is a long-term investment. But choosing the right fund manager and right fund allocation is very important. There is a long lock in period here but then NPS is meant for retirement planning only where investors get both lump sum amount and pension every month after retirement till their death. Investor gets 60% of maturity amount and 40% of corpus is utilised in annuity for payment of pension. Returns can be reaped only when there are long term investments only. It also provides tax benefits. So, NPS can be considered as a good long-term retirement planning scheme.
Optimal Debt-Equity Portfolio for Age 40–50: The mix of debt-equity in a portfolio depends upon the age of investors and risk-taking capacity. But as per the data collected, it can be concluded that the best debt-equity mix can be taken as Equity-50%, Corporate bonds-25% and Government securities-25% in the age group of 40-50, where high risk is mitigated with low risk.
As the returns generated by all the fund manager are very close to each other but among all, the best fund manager can be taken as “HDFC Pension Management Company Limited” as they have generated good returns on equity (which is the highest return generating asset class) and overall funds from inception and consistent in their returns because they used to invest in five holdings of top companies which are Reliance Industries, Infosys, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Tata Consultancy Services. The right time to invest the lump sum amount in NPS is when the Sensex is low, if the investment contains a good percentage of equity in it.
Actionable Recommendations for Subscribers & PFRDA
- Market Timing & Deferment at Age 60: At the time of retirement, if the market is in a poor situation, the subscriber should extend the withdrawal of the corpus to the next 15 years as he can extend up to 75 years of age and can withdraw anytime, whenever the Sensex is high. He/she can also withdraw in 10 instalments (maximum). Also one can defer the annuity investment for 3 years from retirement age. By this process, one can cover the market risk.
- Alternative Investments for 40% Corpus: The PFRDA should implement policies to invest 40% in some other schemes which give more returns than annuities.
- Voluntary Annuity Choice: The investors should get the option to voluntarily invest in any other profitable schemes instead of a compulsory contribution of 40% of the maturity amount in an annuity.
- Enhancement of 100% Lump-Sum Ceilings: The government should increase the limit for 100% withdrawal from 5 lakhs to 10 lakhs and from 2.5 lakhs to 5 lakhs in case of premature exit.
- Auto Choice for Asset Allocation Dilemma: If the investors find difficulty in choosing a mixture of investments, they can simply opt for auto mode.
- Annuity Selection Strategy: The investor must choose such annuity plan where he gets monthly pension with return of purchase price on death of subscriber.
References
- Ananth, S. and Balanaga Gurunathan, K. (2016), “Performance of National Pension Scheme In India”, International Journal of Research In Commerce, IT & Management, Volume No. 6 (2016), Page no. 13-16, Issue No. 07 (July) ISSN 2231-5756.
- Anita and Pankaj Kumar (2014), “National Pension System Swavalamban Scheme”, Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, Volume-2, Issue 7, July 2014.
- Ayanendu Sanyal, K. Gayithri and S. Erappa, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 46, No. 8 (February 19-25, 2011), (Pgs. 17-19).
- Bijaya Kumar Barik (2015), “Analysis of Mutual Fund Pension Schemes & National Pension Scheme (NPS) for Retirement Planning”, International Journal of Business and Administration Research Review, Volume-3, Issue 11, July - Sep 2015 (Pgs. 108).
- Dr. Vani Kamath and Dr. Roopali Patil (2017), “Cost-Benefit Analysis of National Pension Scheme”, International Journal of Management, Volume-8, Issue 3, May–June 2017, (Pgs. 156–158).
- Gupta Sen Subhro, Gupta Neha and Garg Komal (2017) “An Empirical Study of National Pension Scheme concerning Corporate Bond, Equity & Government Securities”, International Journal of Engineering Technology Science and Research, Volume 4, Issue 10 October 2017.
- Kali Sukhen, Jana Subrata (2017), “Pension Reform in India with Reference of New Pension Scheme”, IJRDO-Journal of Business Management, Vol. 3, Issue 17, 2017.