EPF benefit: AP HC directs RO to consider APSACS employees plea

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh High Court has directed Regional Officer (RO), Employees' Provident Fund (EPF), Guntur, to consider the representations submitted by the State AIDS Control Employees' Union strictly as per law and rules. The union had sought the implementation of the Employees' Provident Fund for all the members irrespective of the salary cap of Rs 15000.

The Court also directed the Regional Officer to consider the representation of petitioner Sudarthi Venu within ten weeks and intimate the petitioners.

State President of AP AIDS Control Employees' Union, Sudarthi Venu, and two others P Venkatasubbaiah and Madikonda Jayakumar of the union had filed a writ petition seeking directions to the Central Provident Fund Commissioner to initiate an inquiry as contemplated in Section 7 A in the EPF and Miscellaneous Provision Act-1952 to extend EPF benefits to the all the employees working in NACO Project

Venu mentioned that the newly appointed employees are given EPF but many employees are not getting EPF benefits though they have been working for 15 to 20 years. In 2015, NACO issued an office memorandum to all the State AIDS Control Societies regarding the implementation of EPF facility for all Andhra Pradesh State AIDS Control Society (APSACS) employees whose consolidated remuneration is below Rs 15,000 per month.

Based on the NACO instructions, APSACS implemented EPF policy in July 2015 but of the total 1,200 employees, only 380 employees were given the EPF facility, he added. They have taken total consolidated remuneration (Ranges between Rs 15,500 and Rs 16,750) into consideration. Due to this, as many as 800 employees have lost the EPF benefit, Venu added.

In other national programs such as National Health Mission, even though the salary/remuneration of employees is Rs 50,000, EPF made applicable up to Rs 15,000. The same should be applied to these 800 employees who were paid above Rs 15,000, Venu pleaded