There are many government schemes in the name of senior citizens in the country, but what benefits do the elderly get?

Senior Citizens Investment: While studying in schools in childhood, Master Saheb is often found explaining to his students that parents, guests, teachers and elders should be treated like gods. They should be respected and always do something for them. The government also says that elders should be respected. As long as a man remains young, he worries less about his own future and mostly about the future of his children and family. He spends most of his hard-earned money on them, but after retirement no one cares about those elders. Even the government is concerned only as long as they are in the job and the hands and feet keep working. After retirement, facing financial crunch, these elderly people remain lying in some corner of the house or are sent to old age homes. So to say, the government has prepared about 8-10 schemes for the elderly in the name of the elderly, but to make them financially strong, there is only one scheme and that is fixed deposit. Come, let us know how many schemes have been started by the government in the name of the elderly and how do these schemes work? Do they really serve as a support to the elderly?

How many schemes has the government made for the elderly in India?

The government started about 8-10 schemes for the elderly to live a happy life after retirement. These include Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS), Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandan Yojana (PMVVY), Post Office Monthly Income Scheme (POMIS), Senior Citizen Fixed Deposit (SSFD), Fixed Deposit (FD), Systematic Deposit Scheme, Mutual Funds, National Pension System (NPS). NPS), Equity Linked Savings Scheme (ELSS) and some pension schemes.

Senior Citizen Savings Scheme

The government has launched the Senior Citizens Savings Scheme (SCSS) for people aged 60 years and above. Although the government had introduced this scheme for senior citizens, employed people in the age group of 50 to 60 invest in this scheme, so that they can continue to get the benefit of tax exemption. About 8.20% return is given on investing in this scheme. A minimum of Rs 1000 to a maximum of Rs 30 lakh can be invested in this. Its maturity period is 5 years. The account can be closed only after one year from the date of opening. If you close the account before completion of two years, a penalty of 1.50% will be charged on your deposit. Under this scheme, the benefit of tax exemption is given under Section 80C of Income Tax.

Prime Minister Vay Vandan Yojana

The Central Government had started the Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandan Yojana in the year 2017. Earlier its duration was till 31 March 2020, which was extended to 31 March 2023. Under this scheme, people of 60 years of age or above can open an account and invest. The government gives 8% return annually on investment in this scheme. A minimum of Rs 1.5 lakh and a maximum of Rs 7.5 lakh can be invested in this scheme. The duration of this policy is 10 years. In this, interest payment can be monthly, quarterly or half-yearly. Under this scheme, loan up to 75% of the deposited amount can be taken after three years. In case of serious illness, up to 98% of the amount can be withdrawn prematurely.

Post Office Monthly Income Scheme

Under this scheme of the government, not only senior citizens above 60 years of age but anyone above 10 years of age can open an account and deposit money. In this scheme of the government, 7.40% return is available on the deposited amount. In this, account can be opened after depositing minimum Rs 1500 and maximum Rs 4.5 lakh. The minimum investment period in this is five years. If someone needs money before the maturity date, then the amount can be withdrawn after depositing the money continuously for one year.

Senior Citizen Fixed Deposit

The government started this scheme for senior citizens in May 2020 during the Covid pandemic. In this, people of 60 years of age or older can open an account and deposit money. Under this scheme the investor gets 7.80% return annually. However, Small Finance Bank Senior Citizen Fixed Deposit gives annual returns of up to 9.75%. In this, money can be deposited by opening an account in any bank branch for a period ranging from Rs 180 to one year, three years and five years. The minimum amount of investment in these is Rs 5000 and maximum is Rs 2 crore. It depends on the policy of the banks.

fixed deposit

Fixed deposits have been the most preferred investment option in India for a long time. Especially, it has been considered most beneficial for senior citizens. There was a time when it was said that under this scheme, if a fixed deposit was made in banks for five years, the money would double. At present the money does not double, but banks give 7.5% to 9% annual returns. In this, money remains safe and there is guaranteed return.

systematic deposit scheme

Systematic Deposit Plan (SDP) combines the features of Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) and Fixed Deposit (FD). Under this scheme, instead of depositing a large amount in lump sum, one has to deposit small amounts on monthly basis like SIP. Each monthly deposit is treated as a separate FD and better returns are given on each deposit. In this, annual returns are available up to 8.85%. This period is 12 to 60 months. Under this scheme, two options are given to deposit money. One is single maturity scheme and the other is monthly maturity scheme.

mutual fund

By investing money in mutual funds through SIP, a huge amount can be deposited for the future. People invest in equity and debt funds through mutual funds. These funds are managed by fund managers. The money deposited in this is used in the stock market and investors are given returns on the earnings from it with compounding. Retired persons can get better returns by investing money in short term debt funds. Its money is invested in bonds and given as loan to companies with good credit ratings for one to three years. These debt funds can give much higher returns than fixed funds in banks. In this, investing in short-term funds gives an annual return of 7.81 percent and conservative hybrid funds get 8.34 percent returns. Investing for long term gives returns of 12 to 15%.

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Equity Linked Savings Scheme

Equity Linked Saving Scheme (ELSS) is a tax saving mutual fund scheme, which mainly invests in equity or equity related instruments. The objective of this scheme is to earn in the long term by investing in the equity market. In this, the lockin period is three years from the date of investment. The benefit of tax exemption is available under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act.

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