 The National Pension System (NPS) is a voluntary defined contribution pension system administered and regulated by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), created by an Act of the Parliament of India.The NPS started with the decision of the Government of India to stop defined benefit pensions for all its employees who joined after 1 January 2004.While the scheme was initially designed for government employees only, it was opened up for all citizens of India in 2009.