The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has announced to spend Rs 13.10 crore for welfare of its 15,529 employees across 145 offices in FY25, which includes Rs 74.37 lakh for holiday homes.
According to an EPFO circular, Rs 2 crore has been allocated as central pool (death relief fund).
The budget includes Rs 94.25 lakh towards scholarship. whereas 1.88 crore towards other activities fund. The welfare fund allocated for OA-medical checkup comprises Rs 3.97 crore on employees over age 40 and Rs 1.27 crore towards employees who are less than 40 years.
Moreover, the organisation has kept Rs 1.26 crore on mementos across all offices, Rs 29 lakh on cultural meets, and another Rs 61 lakh on canteen.
EPFO has also announced a new rule under which, when an individual changes jobs, their old Provident Fund (PF) balance will be automatically transferred to the new employer.
According to Union Labour minister Mansukh Mandaviya, EPFO members and subscribers can withdraw Rs 1 lakh from their PF account instead of previous limit of Rs 50,000. The government has now eased regulations and has hiked the one-time withdrawal limit from PF accounts.
The minister said this week that the government aims to enhance EPFO operations and minimise challenges for subscribers.
EPFO added 19.29 lakh net members in June this year, which represents a 7.86 per cent increase over the same month last year.
Earlier this month, the Centre approved the Centralised Pension Payments System (CPPS) that will benefit more than 78 lakh people under the Employee Pension Scheme (EPS), which is part of EPFO. EPS pensioners can get pension from any bank, any branch, anywhere in India from January 1, 2025.
In the next phase, the government will transition to the Aadhaar-based Payment System (ABPS).
(With inputs from IANS)
