Financial planning, March 26 -- Planning for your retirement must take into consideration rising costs, future medical and emergency needs, and lifestyle inflation. Thus, it is advisable to have some allocation towards secure and long-term investment options such as the public provident fund (PPF), employees provident fund (EPF) and the national pension scheme (NPS).

Launched by the Government of India, PPF, EPF and NPS are schemes with tax-free payout and higher rate of interest compared to bank fixed deposits or recurring deposits (FDs or RDs). They are reliable and safe instruments for conservative investors seeking consistent long-term returns and income tax benefits.

PPF is a government backed savings scheme, with guaranteed tax-ex...