EPF is an instrument to provide post retirement financial assistance to employees of organised sector. This financial instrument relies on the money deposited by the employee and the employer in the EPF account of the employee. The money deposited in the account is maintained by government through labor department. As the money deposited in the EPF account of the employee is available to the government through EPFO under labour department, government offers an interest on the deposited amount. The rate of interest is unilaterally decided by the government. EPF is mandatory for an employee, the employee do not have any right to decide on the control of his hard earned money at all. Even after being the rightful owner of the money deposited in the EPF account, an EPF subscriber has no right to participate in decision making process of rate of interest. Nor the employee has right to withdraw own hard earned money as and when required. The sole authority to decide on withdrawal of the money of the employee lies with EPFO. With these one sided rules governing the control of money of the employee, how can EPF be claimed to be financial security of employee?

In reality, EPF is merely a mandatory fixed deposit scheme governed under oppressive rules in favor of government and not in the favor of the employee who is rightful owner of the money.

There are other financial instruments like PPF (Public Provident Fund), FD (Fixed Deposit) and Savings Bank Deposit where a person can deposit their money and earn interest similar to EPF. Unlike EPF, these deposit schemes are voluntary. Therefore a person can exercise his right to deposit his hard earned money in these instruments or not. This also provides a person the control of their money and these instruments are not fully restrictive and one sided against the person who is real owner of the money.

With the current set of rules, EPF is not really an instrument of financial security to an employee but it is an instrument of exploitation of employee at the hands of government. The rules governing EPF violate fundamental right of the employees and such exploitative rules shall be scrapped and new set of rules shall be brought in which honors the fundamental right of employee and works in favor of the employee.