Kupwara, Apr 29; Braving heavy rainfall and challenging conditions, the Regional Office of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) in Kashmir organized the “Nidhi Aapke Nikat” outreach program in Kupwara on April 29, 2024. The participatory awareness and grievance redressal initiative aimed to strengthen the relationship between the organization and its stakeholders, including employees and employers.
Despite Kupwara being cut off from the rest of the valley due to incessant rains and flash floods, which damaged roads and forced closures, the EPFO officials demonstrated their commitment by walking several kilometres on foot to reach the venue. The program was conducted successfully under the guidance of Vinay Kumar, Regional Provident Fund Commissioner-II/OIC, and led by Enforcement Officer Latif Ahmad Zargar, Abdul Rashid Mir SSA, Ahmar Rashid Shah SSA, and Mehraj ur Rehman SSA.
During the session, participants were informed about the applicability of the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, the provisions of the Employees’ Pension Scheme 1995 and Linked Insurance Scheme 1976, e-nominations, and KYC requirements.
The theme of this month’s “Nidhi Aapke Nikat” program was “Pensioners Services – I,” which focused on Member Pension, Death Pension, Widow/Widower Pension, Orphan Pension, and Disablement Pension. Participants were educated about the importance of enrolling employees under the Provident Fund and Pension Fund, as well as the need for timely contributions to protect their families in the event of any untoward incidents.
The benefits of the Employees’ Deposit Linked Insurance (EDLI) scheme were also highlighted, wherein an assured benefit of Rs. 2.5 lakh up to a maximum of Rs. 7 lakh will be given to the nominee of the deceased upon their death in service, provided the deceased had rendered more than one year of continuous service as an EPFO member.
A special Pension/Grievance Help Desk was set up at the camp to facilitate quick redressal of pensioners’ problems, settlement of on-spot grievances, integration of various UAN and EPF accounts, procedures for linking KYC to UAN accounts, solving employers’ problems, and name correction.
The participants expressed their gratitude to the EPFO authorities for conducting such awareness programs and expressed hope that similar initiatives would continue in the future to benefit more employees through the social security schemes provided by EPFO India.