The Andhra Pradesh government has extended the retirement age for permanent employees of public sector undertakings (PSUs), corporations and societies from 60 to 62 years. This brings them on a par with regular state government staff. The revised Andhra Pradesh retirement age applies to employees working in institutions covered under Schedule 9 and Schedule 10 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014.
Finance Department Special Chief Secretary Peeyush Kumar issued the official orders on Thursday, formalizing the AP retirement age 62 policy for thousands of employees across state-run corporations, boards and societies. The move is expected to benefit a large section of the PSU workforce that has been demanding parity with regular government employees for several years.
AP Retirement Age 62 Years: Background
The state government had already raised the retirement age of Andhra Pradesh’s regular employees from 60 to 62 years in 2022. Since then, employees of PSUs, corporations and societies have consistently demanded that the same benefit be extended to them. Many employees approached courts seeking relief, and several obtained favourable orders permitting them to continue in service beyond 60. Taking these demands into account, the Andhra Pradesh government examined the fiscal implications of the proposal before the Cabinet approved it, paving the way for the fresh orders.
Relief for Employees Already Retired at 60
The order also provides relief to employees who had already retired at 60. Those who are eligible can now be taken back into service and allowed to continue until 62. However, the Andhra Pradesh government has clarified that no salary will be paid for the gap period between their original retirement and re-joining. For this gap period, notional annual increments will be considered while releasing future increments, though actual cash benefits will apply only from the date an employee re-joins duty. The out-of-employment period will also be taken into account for seniority and promotion purposes. Employees who do not wish to re-join service can choose to remain retired at 60 under the earlier terms.
Employees Continuing on Court Orders
A separate provision covers employees who continued working up to 62 years on the strength of earlier court directions. Under the new orders, such employees will now be treated as regular employees for this extended period and will be entitled to all applicable service benefits, including full seniority and promotion consideration, in line with the revised AP retirement age 62 framework.
Implementation across PSUs and Societies
The Finance Department has directed that these orders be forwarded without delay to all concerned public sector undertakings, corporations and societies for implementation. Each institution has been asked to incorporate the necessary service rules while factoring in its own financial position, and any additional budgetary requirement arising from the extended retirement age must receive approval from the Finance Department before being implemented. This ensures the Andhra Pradesh retirement age revision is rolled out uniformly, while still giving individual institutions room to plan for the added financial commitment on salaries, pensions and terminal benefits.
Officials note that the extended tenure could help PSUs and corporations retain experienced personnel for two additional years, easing succession planning in technical and managerial roles where trained staff are otherwise in short supply. At the same time, the government has sought to limit the fiscal impact by withholding pay for any gap period and requiring Finance Department clearance for budgetary changes at the institutional level.
What It Means for Employees
For employees who have long sought parity with their counterparts in regular government service, the decision marks the end of a years-long demand. Employee associations have welcomed the government’s decision, describing it as a positive response to a persistent grievance. With this order, the Andhra Pradesh retirement age of 62 now uniformly applies across regular state government employees as well as those working in PSUs, corporations and societies falling under Schedule 9 and Schedule 10 of the state’s reorganisation framework.
Source: News
