Allow gig workers the option to choose between EPF and NPS schemes

If millions of gig workers are forced into EPF without the option of NPS, complaints about the system's inefficiencies will intensify as its shortcomings inevitably emerge

It is 2028. Ambar, a Mumbai-based gig worker, juggles jobs across three service apps. Since 2026, when the government mandated Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) contributions for gig workers, a monthly “EPF” deduction has appeared in his earning statements across all three platforms. 

Now diagnosed with cancer, Ambar tries to withdraw from his EPF corpus — a purpose for which withdrawal is allowed under EPF rules — only to be denied. The reason? Multiple employers have contributed to his account. The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation’s (EPFO’s) rigid systems flag this as a discrepancy, freezing access. Marketed initially as a benefit, the