Name: Wealth Planning Calculator
Author: CA Meet Dhrangadhariya

Three Options at a Glance

Conservative

Fixed Income Focus

SCSS + FDs + liquid. Capital fully protected, income predictable, but real value erodes over time.

₹35,000

Year-1 Monthly Income

7.5–8.2%

Avg. Yield

~22 yrs

Corpus Life

Low

Risk

Balanced ⭐

Bucket StrategyRecommended

Three buckets by time horizon. Income, stability, growth — detailed below. Beats inflation; legacy remains.

₹35,000

Year-1 Monthly Income

9–10%

Blended Return

30+ yrs

Corpus Life

Moderate

Risk

Growth

Equity-Heavy SWP

Higher equity allocation, higher expected return, but exposed to sequence-of-returns risk early on.

₹35,000

Year-1 Monthly Income

11–13%

Target Return

30+ yrs

Corpus Life

High

Risk

The Recommendation — Bucket Strategy

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Why three buckets, not one big portfolio

The corpus is split by time horizon, not by asset class. Bucket 1 funds the next 5 years of income from capital-safe instruments, so a bad year in equity markets never threatens the monthly paycheque. Bucket 2 is the refill tank — stable-return funds that quietly replenish Bucket 1 every 2-3 years. Bucket 3 is pure growth and is left untouched for 10-15 years, giving equity markets time to compound through the cycle. This is the core mechanism that delivers 30 years of inflation-adjusted income from ₹1 crore.

Bucket 01 · Income

YEARS 0 – 5

The Paycheque

Holds the next five years of expenses in capital-safe instruments. Funds the monthly income regardless of what the markets do.

₹ 35,00,000

35% of corpus · ~8.0% blended yield

SCSS · Parent A

8.2% p.a. · quarterly payout · 5-yr lock

₹ 15 L
SCSS · Parent B

8.2% p.a. · quarterly payout · 5-yr lock

₹ 15 L
Liquid / overnight fund

Emergency + medical buffer · on-demand

₹ 5 L

Bucket 02 · Stability

YEARS 5 – 15

The Refill Tank

Short-to-medium-duration debt and conservative hybrids. Lower volatility than equity, better inflation hedge than pure FDs.

₹ 30,00,000

30% of corpus · target 8–9% p.a.

Short-duration debt fund

Gain taxed at slab · effectively nil here

₹ 12 L
Conservative hybrid fund

~20% equity, ~80% debt · category-level

₹ 10 L
Arbitrage fund

Debt-like risk, equity taxation (LTCG 12.5%)

₹ 8 L

Bucket 03 · Growth

YEARS 15 – 30

The Inflation Hedge

Equity-oriented hybrid and multi-asset. Untouched for the first 10-15 years, giving it room to compound through cycles.

₹ 35,00,000

35% of corpus · target 11–12% p.a.

Balanced advantage fund

Dynamic 30-80% equity · equity-taxed

₹ 15 L
Multi-asset allocation fund

Equity + debt + gold, in one wrapper

₹ 12 L
Large-cap index / flexicap

Long-tail inflation hedge

₹ 8 L

How ₹35,000 a Month Arrives — Year 1 ₹ 35,000 / month

Source	Corpus	Yield / Return	Frequency	Monthly Contribution
SCSS · Parent A	₹ 15,00,000	8.2%	Quarterly	₹ 10,250
SCSS · Parent B	₹ 15,00,000	8.2%	Quarterly	₹ 10,250
SWP from Bucket 2	₹ 30,00,000	~8%	Monthly SWP	₹ 14,500
Bucket 3 (growth)	₹ 35,00,000	11–12%	No withdrawal	— reserve
Liquid reserve	₹ 5,00,000	~7%	On-demand	— reserve
Deployed · drawn for income				₹ 35,000 / month

↗ Step-up rule: SWP from Bucket 2 increases by 6% each year to match inflation · Bucket 3 begins glide-path into Bucket 2 around year 10

The Real Tax Picture

✓

Effective tax on this plan ≈ nil in both regimes

Each parent earns ~₹1.68 L from plan interest and their share of SWP gains, plus ₹3 L from business income. Under the new regime the 87A rebate wipes out tax up to ₹12 L total income. Under the old regime, the ₹3 L basic exemption for seniors plus the new ₹1 L 80TTB deduction leaves virtually nothing taxable. The earlier assumption of a 30% slab was wrong for these recipients.

Old Regime

With deductions

Works well when you want to claim Section 80TTB and basic exemption. Straightforward for seniors with predominantly interest income.

Basic exemption · ₹3,00,000For age 60–79 · per parent
Section 80TTB · ₹1,00,000Deduction on FD + SCSS + savings interest (raised in Budget 2026)
Slab after deductions5% on next ₹2 L · 20% on ₹5–10 L · 30% above

Per-parent taxable after deductions: ₹0 — tax payable ₹0

New Regime

Default · Simpler

Fewer deductions to track. The 87A rebate is the key lever and it fully covers the income in this plan.

Basic exemption · ₹4,00,000Same for all ages · per parent
Section 87A rebateFull rebate of tax payable if total income ≤ ₹12 L (capped ₹60,000)
Slabs5% above ₹4 L · 10% above ₹8 L · 15% above ₹12 L · and so on

Per-parent income ~₹4.7 L — tax after 87A ₹0

What If It Goes Wrong — Stress Tests

Scenario	Blended Return	Year-15 Income (inflated)	Year-30 Corpus (today's ₹)	Verdict
Base case 11% equity · 8% debt · 8.2% SCSS · 6% inflation	~9.5%	₹ 83,900	₹ 48 L	✓ Holds. Legacy remains.
Returns 2 pp lower Equity averages 9%, debt 6%	~7.5%	₹ 83,900	₹ 12 L	⚠ Thin. Step-down likely yr 22-25.
Inflation 2 pp higher 8% rather than 6% over 30 years	~9.5%	₹ 1,11,000	₹ 6 L	⚠ Nearly exhausted by yr 28.
Equity crash year 2 30% drawdown, recovery by year 5	~8.8%	₹ 83,900	₹ 29 L	✓ Survives — Bucket 1 isolates income.

Reading the table: plan is robust to single-factor shocks, fragile to persistently lower returns, most sensitive to persistent higher inflation. Annual review is the strongest single mitigation.

Risks & Mitigations

Healthcare Expense Shock

A ₹10-15 L hospitalisation can wipe out three years of withdrawals. The single biggest financial risk for senior parents.

Mitigation · Super top-up health cover of ₹25 L on top of existing base policy. Premium funded from SCSS payouts. ₹5 L liquid reserve for deductibles.

Sequence-of-Returns Risk

A large equity drawdown in years 1-5 while withdrawals continue can permanently impair the corpus.

Mitigation · Bucket 1 funds years 0-5 entirely from SCSS + liquid. Bucket 3 (equity) not touched until year 10-15. This is the core benefit of the bucket structure.

Longevity Risk

Indian life expectancy at 60 is now 82-85 for women who reach 60 in good health. 30 years is tight, not generous.

Mitigation · Bucket 3 sized to still hold material corpus at year 30 in base case. Evaluate immediate annuity option at age 75 as tail hedge.

Estate & First-Passing

Frictions on first parent's passing can delay income for months — SCSS closure, folio transmission, nomination disputes.

Mitigation · All accounts in "either or survivor" where allowed. Nominations filed at opening. Two-page registered Will in place.

SCSS Rate Reset

SCSS lock-in is 5 years. Current 8.2% is locked for the first tenure; on renewal the rate may be materially lower.

Mitigation · At year 4, part of Bucket 2's maturing debt is ready to absorb any shortfall. Renewal re-underwritten then, not committed today.

Tax Law Change Over 30 Years

LTCG has moved twice since 2018. Assuming today's 12.5% / ₹1.25 L exemption persists for 30 years is unrealistic.

Mitigation · Annual review with CA. Plan diversified across tax buckets — no single rule change breaks it, only shifts which bucket is most efficient.

Action Checklist — Before a Rupee Moves

Confirm each parent's regime choice for FY 2025-26 New regime wins on simplicity here since tax is nil either way. Document the choice; it can be revisited annually.

WEEK 1

Gift documentation from Krunal to parents Gift from son to parents is exempt but must be documented. Gift deed signed; consider clubbing provisions on subsequent income.

WEEK 1–2

Open SCSS accounts — one per parent, ₹15 L each Nomination at opening. Quarterly payout to a common savings account. Max SCSS limit is ₹30 L per senior; we use ₹15 L to keep room for future top-ups.

WEEK 2–3

Deploy Bucket 2 (₹30 L) through a registered adviser SEBI-registered RIA or AMFI-registered MFD. Use the category brief above; document scheme selection against the brief.

WEEK 3–4

Stagger Bucket 3 (₹35 L) equity deployment over 18-24 months Park in arbitrage or liquid, STP into equity-oriented schemes. Avoids single-date equity entry risk.

MONTH 1–24

Health cover review — base + super top-up, ₹25 L floor Senior-specific policy. Premium funded by SCSS interest so it doesn't drain the corpus.

WEEK 2–6

Registered Will + nominations + joint-holdings A two-page registered Will is sufficient. Critical for a 30-year plan and continuity on first passing.

MONTH 1–2

Annual review every April, before ITR filing Rebalance if any bucket drifts ±5 pp from target. Re-project 30-year plan with actual returns. Adjust step-up in lean years.

ANNUAL

Key Assumptions & Insights

📅

Staggered Deployment

Bucket 1 (SCSS + liquid) and Bucket 2 (debt/hybrid) deploy within 30 days. Bucket 3 (equity) deploys via STP over 18-24 months to avoid single-date equity entry risk.

🧾

Tax Reality

Effective tax ≈ nil for both parents in either regime. Each parent's taxable income stays under ₹5 L; 87A rebate (new regime) or 80TTB + basic exemption (old regime) absorbs it fully.

📉

Inflation Step-Up

6% annual inflation assumed. The SWP from Bucket 2 is stepped up by 6% each year so the ₹35,000 today becomes ~₹83,900 in year 15 and ~₹2,00,000 in year 30.

🛡

Review Cadence

Annual review every April before ITR filing. Rebalance if any bucket drifts ±5 pp from target. Year 10 is the planned transition point when Bucket 3 begins feeding Bucket 2.

⚠️

Important Disclaimer Prepared by CA Meet Dhrangadhariya for informational and advisory purposes only. Returns, yields and corpus projections are estimates based on current tax law (Finance Act 2024, Budget 2026) and typical market assumptions; actual outcomes will vary. Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks — read all scheme-related documents carefully before investing. Scheme categories are indicated; specific scheme selection should be made through a SEBI-registered Investment Adviser or an AMFI-registered Mutual Fund Distributor. Tax positions must be confirmed against each recipient's actual return filing. This document does not constitute legal, tax, or regulatory advice.