Shashi Tharoor, Lok Sabha member from Thiruvananthapuram, has urged the Centre to enhance the pension under the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) scheme to at least Rs 5,000.
The existing minimum pension of the scheme was “totally inadequate” for over 3.5 million under the scheme who had spent their working life in the most productive sectors of the national economy, he said in a statement on Tuesday.
“There are cases of pensioners with 40 years’ service receiving Rs 550 a month. The basic pension should be raised to at least Rs 5,000 a month,” the former Union minister said.
He also wanted the Dearness Relief linkage to be provided on the pension as granted to all other pensioners. Otherwise, the scheme would not serve any purpose since the increase in cost of living would not be accounted for, he said.
The government should initiate immediate measures to increase the corpus fund of the scheme, he said and suggested that more establishments in all sectors including the IT sector be brought under the ambit of the scheme.
Mr. Tharoor wanted a thorough review of the scheme to be undertaken to update various provisions and benefits under it.
Keywords: Employees Provident Fund, Pension, Sashi Tharoor, Cost of living
