To ensure better returns to the 45.4 million EPF subscribers, the Central Board of Trustees had appointed four fund managers namely HSBC Asset Management Company, ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company, State Bank of India and Reliance Capital Asset Management Company.

The Standing Committee on Labour in its fifth report reiterated its earlier recommendation that there should be a minimum assured return to the subscribers. The panel also urged the ministry to ensure that these fund managers function as per government guidelines.
Yearly appraisal

“The committee also desires that in order to have proper check on the functioning of the fund managers, a yearly appraisal report should be sought from them by the EPFO containing details of the contribution made by the employer, employee and the interest accumulated on the principal amount,” the report said.

“The report should further be checked and verified by the EPFO and workers/employees should be allowed to have access to their account through official website of EPFO and also manually in its offices all over the country,” it said.

The committee also expressed its unhappiness that no tangible action has been taken by the Ministry to secure strict compliance to the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952.

A sub-committee, constituted by the chairman of Central Board of Trustees in January 2008, was asked to put forth ways to curb evasion of the Act by May 2009 but the report is still not ready.

“The committee, therefore, reiterated that necessary corrective measures must be taken without further delay by the government to protect and safeguard the interest of workers as envisaged in the Act,” the report said.