All the Defence Pensioners drawing Pension through System for Pension Administration (Raksha) or SPARSH are requested to complete Annual Identification by 20^th February, 2023. The completion of the Annual Identification/Life Certification is a statutory requirement for the continued and timely credit of the monthly pension.

It may be recalled that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) had earlier approved the extension of pension payment for three months for banks’ pensioners, who migrated to SPARSH and whose identification was due in November 2022.Three lakh ninety thousand three hundred and sixty-six (3,19,366) Defence pensioners drawing pension through SPARSH have not yet completed their Annual Identification, as per the information currently available with the Defence Accounts Department. It is imperative that such pensioners complete the Annual Identification/Life Certification before the deadline.

Annual Identification/Life Certification can be done via the following means:

1. Via the Digital Jeevan Pramaan online/Jeevan Pramaan Face App for
   Android Users.

· Details of installation & usage may be found here: https://jeevanpramaan.gov.in/package/documentdowload/JeevanPramaan_FaceApp_3.6_Installation

· SPARSH Pensioner: Please choose Sanctioning Authority as “Defence – PCDA (P) Allahabad” & Disbursing Authority as “SPARSH – PCDA (Pensions) Allahabad”.

2. Pensioners can complete Annual Identification/Life Certification by logging in https://sparsh.defencepension.gov.in/ and opting for:

· Download & upload Manual Life Certificate (MLC) duly signed by authorized signatory, or

· By selecting Aadhaar based Digital Life Certificate (DLC)

3. Pensioners may also visit for completing their Annual Identification/Life Certification at nearest Service Centre established at following agencies:

· Common Service Centres (CSCs) – To find your nearest CSC click here: https://findmycsc.nic.in/

· Nearest DPDO or Defence Accounts Department Service Centre.

· Service centres established by SBI, PNB, Bank of Baroda, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

· To locate SPARSH service centres available at Defence Account Department or Banks click here - https://sparsh.defencepension.gov.in/?page=serviceCentreLocator.

Pensioners who have completed their identification can check status on SPARSH portal at https://sparsh.defencepension.gov.in/?page=trackPpoStatus / Services -> Know our SPARSH PPO and Identification status.

Legacy Pensioner (pre-2016 Retiree) who has not yet migrated to SPARSH can perform their Life Certification as was being done by them in previous years. For performing life certification through Jeevan Pramaan, they have to select respective Sanctioning Authority as “Defence – Jt.CDA(AF) Subroto Park” or Defence – PCDA (P) Allahabad” or “Defence – PCDA (Navy) Mumbai & Disbursing Authority as your respective pension disbursing bank/DPDO etc.

SPARSH is a web-based system for processing pension claims and crediting the pension directly into bank accounts of defence pensioners without any external intermediary. The system is being implemented by MoD for meeting the pension, sanction and disbursement requirements of  Armed Forces. It is a centralized sanction, claim and pension disbursement system with easy validation and rectification of data through self-verification thereby creating "First-time correct data" with assured accuracy. It uses digital process for pensioner identification, removing the requirement of multiple visits by pensioners to the pension offices.

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