The Ministry of Defence has successfully onboarded 31.69 lakh defence pensioners from across India and Nepal onto SPARSH (System for Pension Administration-Raksha), marking a major milestone in the digital transformation of defence pension management, officials said on Monday. Administered by the Defence Accounts Department (DAD) through the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (Pensions), Prayagraj, SPARSH replaces the earlier fragmented system that involved over 45,000 agencies with a unified, transparent and accountable digital framework for pension sanction, administration and disbursement.
As part of the migration process, authorities identified 6.43 lakh discrepant cases from legacy systems. Of these, around 6.07 lakh cases have been normalised without affecting pension entitlements, demonstrating significant progress in resolving long-standing issues.
To support pensioners — including the elderly and those with limited digital access — the DAD has conducted 284 SPARSH Outreach Programmes and 194 Raksha Pension Samadhan Ayojans nationwide, resolving over 8,000 grievances on the spot during the current financial year, according to the official statement.
The onboarding also brought digital services closer to beneficiaries, enabling pensioners to view their pension details and raise corrections online. Average grievance resolution time has improved sharply — from 56 days in April 2025 to 17 days in November 2025 — reflecting enhanced service delivery.
In addition, under the Digital Life Certificate 4.0 campaign conducted from November 1–30, 2025, the department mobilised 202 offices, 4.63 lakh Common Service Centres (CSCs) and partner banks to generate 20.94 lakh digital life certificates — the highest among all government departments.
Officials said the SPARSH platform, now the largest end-to-end digital pension system in India, underscores the government’s commitment to ensuring timely, transparent and dignified support for defence veterans and their families