TCS expands partnership with SPARSH, India's pension system for defence personnel, by 3 years

Indian technology giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has signed a three-year extension of its contract for SPARSH (System for Pension Administration – Raksha), a government of India initiative to streamline pension distribution for over 30 lakh defence pensioners.

As part of the partnership, TCS will maintain the hardware and software of the programme for three years and deliver key updates to the system.

Streamlined pensions for defence personnel

TCS started the rollout of pension processing on SPARSH in October 2020, implementing an integrated, secure, and efficient pension disbursement solution for India’s defence personnel.

Notably, the system has significantly reduced pension processing times from up to 18 months to just 14 days. First-time pension payments are now issued in as few as five to seven days.

TCS's expertise has also been pivotal in implementing the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme, which guarantees equal pensions for personnel of the same rank and service length, regardless of retirement date.

By leveraging SPARSH, TCS has reduced the OROP payment cycle from several months to two weeks, enabling 1.8 million pensioners to receive their dues within 15 days. 

New goals and potential innovations

Under the renewed contract, TCS will continue to improve efficiency and transparency in pension administration. Moreover, TCS is also in discussion with the department to potentially develop a digital solution that would allow pensioners to make reverse payments in the event of overpayments.

“TCS is proud to support those who’ve served our nation,” said Girish Ramachandran, President of Growth Markets and Public Services at TCS. “By transforming critical public services like SPARSH, we’re setting benchmarks in technology-enabled governance.”

Digitizing the records

The SPARSH system has been a large-scale effort involving the digitization of millions of records, dating back to 1914, and the onboarding of over 30 lakh defence pensioners across the three branches of the Armed Forces. 

TCS has onboarded 50 organizations and 2,302 offices and disbursed a total amount of over Rs 2,82,067 crore in pensions, benefiting both pensioners and the government.

By centralizing the pension disbursement process and eliminating bank service charges, the system has saved the government approximately Rs 250 crore annually.

Tej Paul Bhatla, Senior Vice President at TCS, emphasized the company's commitment to national initiatives, stating, “Our partnership with SPARSH is a testament to TCS’s capability to drive large-scale transformations that enhance public service efficiency and accountability.”