Safety has its own cost

Summary: At 72, you could live another 25 years. A portfolio that looks safe today can become insufficient by the time it matters most. Here's what to fix in Rajesh's retirement setup and what not to touch.

Summary: At 72, you could live another 25 years. A portfolio that looks safe today can become insufficient by the time it matters most. Here's what to fix in Rajesh's retirement setup and what not to touch. Rajesh is 72. He has a Rs 50 lakh portfolio. Seventy per cent of it is in safe instruments, Rs 15 lakh each in SCSS (Senior Citizen Savings Scheme) and PMVVY (Pradhan Mantri Vaya Vandana Yojana, now closed to new subscribers) and the rest in fixed deposits. The remaining 30 per cent is a direct stock portfolio built after the Covid fall of 2020, which has since grown 2.5 times. His monthly expenses are Rs 45,000. His pension covers Rs 25,000. SCSS and PMVVY cover the remaining Rs 20,000. Now, with markets looking uncertain, he wants to move everything to debt and asks how to do it with minimal tax. But tax is not the real issue. The real question is whether a full exit from equity is the right move at all. Don’t fix what isn’t broken Start with what is working. This is not an aggressive retirement setup. Income is largely taken care of. The pension covers more than half of the monthly expenses. The remaining gap is already being met through predictable income sources, i.e., his investments in government schemes. The portfolio is tilted towards safety. Rajesh does not rely on equity

This article was originally published on April 20, 2026.