The Budget turns out to be a damp squib for provident fund managers and, more importantly, employers. But the absence of significant announcements that make life easier will not be surprising. | |
| The bad news was already in place; with the increase in provident fund rates being announced well before the Budget and uncertainty on the wherewithal to fund the liability. |
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| Have the announcements of this Budget made any difference to provident funds? Sadly, no structural and administrative inefficiencies/ bottlenecks concerning employer liability, employee choice in asset allocation and EPFO being both administrator and regulator will ensure that provident funds do not benefit from the positives of this Budget. |
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| So, is this a case of missed opportunities? Yes, it is. For, it is well recognised that if reforms are not undertaken urgently in provident funds, every stakeholder - employees, employers, the government "" stands to lose. |
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| What was sorely missed was a policy statement that indicated the intent to integrate the regulatory frameworks for the government employees pensions and the provident fund. That would have set the agenda for reforming provident funds. |
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