New Delhi, Sept 13: With the operationalisation of contributory pension scheme in the next five months, a new breed of pension advisors authorised by Pension Fund and Regulatory Development Authority is expected to come into being. "It (the appointment of pension advisors) has become all the more important considering the departure from the existing methods of employees provident fund organisation, which mostly invested in low return debt instruments," sources in finance ministry said here.
Not all the investors might be financially literate; it was important to prevent the sale of wrong products that made the contributions of investors vanish in thin air, they said, stressing the need for spreading awareness about the scheme.

Though the Centre has not spelt out the number of pension fund managers, the schemes would broadly have three investment options -- debts, equities, and the mix (balanced fund).
The pension advisors would be on the lines of agents approved by Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI) and Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA).

Asked if there would be any fixed duration training course for insurance advisors (as it exists for insurance and mutual fund brokers), they said these were the issues to be looked into by the interim pension regulator.
Broadly, pension fund advisors would educate investors on the scheme they should opt for to get maximum returns after taking into account their age and risk appetite, they said. Bureau Report