Left says EPF rate will go up to 9.5 %

The PMO, however, clarified that no such assurance was made and the Prime Minister was just ‘‘sympathetic’’ to the AITUC demand for a higher EPF rate.

Prime Minister Singh later said the government would consider the demand for hiking the interest rate of the EPF. ‘‘I have not said anything… (about increasing the EPF rate),’’ he told reporters when asked about Dasgupta’s statement. ‘‘I said we will consider it. When Parliament is in session, I cannot make any announcement (outside),’’ Singh said.

Even Dasgupta had not been entirely categorical. He had prefaced his assertion with the clause, ‘‘as far as I have understood the PM’’. But Dasgupta did say the figure was 9.5. And he had even thanked Singh for being so worker-friendly. ‘‘I have never heard Singh so sympathetic to the demands of the trade union,’’ Dasgupta said. It was, as a result, all the more embarrassing for the Prime Minister to say that he had not pledged a hike.

In fact, Dasgupta had said that the Prime Minister might not feel within his rights to brief the Press as the House is in session. So, he was taking the responsibility of passing on the information to the media.

Dasgupta said that the AITUC delegation raised quite a few issues and included the low wages of anganwadi workers throughout the country. They also discussed the problems faced by the unorganised workforce throughout the country. Dasgupta said that Singh was also sympathetic as he discussed the plight of those working in the unorganised sector.

The CPI delegation also met the Union Labour Minister K.S. Chandrashekhar Rao and discussed with him aspects of the Gratuity and Bonus Acts.

The EPF issue has been a sore point and has repeatedly seen Labour Ministers and trade unionists clashing with the Finance Ministry, only to be turned down.

The EPF Board of trustees had been forced to propose a rate of 8.5 per cent as the board cannot give away more than it earns—unless the government itself agrees to meet the difference.

On this score, the Finance Ministry had turned down requests from former Labour Minister Sish Ram Ola and the current one, Rao.

While the move is expected to enthuse the trade unionists who sit on the board of trustees, it will put more pressure on the government’s attempts to rein in its expenses.

Already, in the first six months of the financial year, the revenue deficit has climbed far beyond expectation.

Added to this is the criticism that a hike in the interest rate will not really help the ordinary worker but will instead benefit the better-off executives whose funds dominate the EPF balances.