EPFO may have Rs 1600 crore surplus by year-end: Bandaru Dattatreya

The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) is likely to have a surplus of Rs 1,600 crore by the end of this year, Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said here.

"At a time when interest rates in all banks are coming down, our EPFO took good initiatives and did portfolio management properly. We gave 8.8% interest rate.

Despite that, we are still likely to have a surplus of Rs 680 crore. There is a chance of that going up to Rs 1,600 crore by this year end," he told reporters here.

Noting that the government is working on providing universal minimum wage, the minister said the statutory amendments (in Parliament) need to be made to make it mandatory.

The national floor level minimum wage issue is now advisory in nature. There is no uniformity in minimum wages being paid in the country at present. The government has held talks with trade unions and different ministries on providing universal minimum wage, he said.

The minister said the Labour Ministry would organise an exhibition and seminar on the achievements on Saturday.

Conventions would be held across the country to raise awareness among workers and employees on the measures taken by the ministry, he said.