EPF interest rate slash a ploy to loot people: Trinamool Congress
Kolkata: Trinamool Congress (TMC) denounced the Centre's move of lowering the interest rate on the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) to a 40-year low of 8.1 per cent for the 2021-2022 financial year and termed it as a step toward looting people and also biting into their hard-earned savings.
The TMC in a tweet said: ''Ever wondered how Mr. Busy Prime Minister Shri Shri @narendramodi ji keeps himself busy? By adding to the woes of people, one after another!" The party also shared a year-wise list of EPF interest rates from 2014-15 when a BJP-led coalition came to power at the Centre.
Trinamool leader Chandrima Bhattacharjee who is also the state Finance minister tweeted: "@narendramodi ji is looting people and also biting into their hard-earned savings. From inept policies to poor governance, we have seen it all in these 8 years. This is extremely cruel!"
Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray referred to the move as anti-labourer, anti-employee and anti-common people. "At a time when the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) is increasing the repo rate, the Central government is reducing PF. They will also bring down interest rates in banks. The people of the county should give a befitting reply to such an anti-people government. Our leader Mamata Banerjee has called for a mass movement and the ground is being prepared for the same with such anti-people steps taken by the Centre," he said.
Ray pointed out a stark dichotomy in the World Inequality Index released in January this year with 64 per cent of assets resting with 10 per cent of people in the country while 5.9 per cent of assets are with 50 per cent of people who belong to the lower stratum of society. "This striking inequality will push the country towards civil war," he maintained.
TMC leader Firhad Hakim lambasted the Centre by claiming that it is encouraging people to invest in the share market by slashing the PF interest rate.
The Centre had on Friday approved an 8.1 per cent rate of interest on EPF deposits for 2021-22 — an over four-decade low — for about five crore subscribers of retirement fund body the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).