Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday targeted the government over the revision in the provident fund interest rate, saying it was the “lowest in 40 years”. Kharge is among several opposition leaders who have critcised the government over the new interest rate. “EPFO has slashed interest rates to 8.1%. The lowest in 40 years. Under UPA, the EPF rates were always between 8.5 to 9.5%. Be it savings or FD rate, the safe banking instruments of the poor and middle class are delivering much lower returns, at a time of high inflation (sic),” the leader of the opposition in Rajya Sabha tweeted
On Saturday, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), the state-run retirement fund manager and a popular savings scheme for millions of salaried middle-class Indians, announced a cut in interest rate from 8.5 per cent to 8.1 per cent. “In today’s meet, EPFO consensus has been that it will pay an 8.1% interest on deposits based on the current position of earnings and deposits of the organisation,” stated Virjesh Upadhyay.
