Bhavishya Software

Source- This post on Bhavishya Software has been created based on the article “BHAVISHYA – Promoting Digital Empowerment and Ease of Living for Pensioners” published in “PIB” on 17 August 2024.

Why in News?

Recently, the DOPPW has introduced an innovative centralized pension processing software called ‘Bhavishya’ for all central government Ministries/Departments.

About Bhavishya

1. About: Bhavishya is a centralized pension processing software introduced by Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare (DOPPW). Bhavishya became mandatory for all central civil Ministries and Departments starting January 1, 2017.

2. Purpose: It is to address the challenges of delays, clerical errors, financial loss, and harassment faced by pensioners during pension processing.

Key Features of Bhavishya

1. Auto Registration of Retirees:  Integrated with payroll systems, Bhavishya automatically registers retiring employees and provides essential Management Information System (MIS) data to various departments, highlighting the number of employees set to retire in the next 15 months.

2. Self-Registration for Stakeholders: All stakeholders, including DDOs, Heads of Offices (HOO), and Pay and Accounts Officers (PAO), can self-register on Bhavishya. Retirees can fill out their pension forms themselves, streamlining the process and reducing errors.

3. Strict Timelines: The pension processing begins 15 months before retirement, with strict deadlines for each stage to ensure timely completion. The software sends automatic reminders to both the pensioner and stakeholders to adhere to these deadlines.

4. Transparency and Accountability:  Bhavishya provides complete transparency in the pension process, making it easy to identify and address any delays, ensuring accountability at every stage.

5. Automatic Calculation of Retirement Benefits:  The software ensures accurate calculation of all retirement benefits by removing manual interventions, reducing the likelihood of grievances.

6. Real-Time Updates: Pensioners receive real-time updates via email and SMS for every action related to their pension processing, from initiation to the first credit in their bank account.

7. e-PPO (Electronic Pension Payment Order): Bhavishya is integrated with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) module, enabling the issuance of electronic PPOs (e-PPOs), which are sent directly to the Central Pension Accounting Office (CPAO) and the paying bank branch.

UPSC Syllabus: Government initiative