According to the latest announcement in Parliament, the Government is working on a housing scheme for providing a low-cost housing for retirement fund body, i.e., Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation’s (EPFO’s), to over five crore subscribers.

In the preliminary discussion stage, the Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said in a written reply to Lok Sabha that the Government is analyzing the possibility for providing an appropriate low-cost housing scheme, for Employees’ Pension Fund subscribers.

To reply this question, the minister said, whether the government or the EPFO has proposed to introduce a scheme that allow its subscribers to pledge their future PF contribution to buy low-cost houses.

Even last year, this proposal was listed on the meeting agenda list, of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation’s EPFO trustees meeting that was held on September 16.

As per meeting minutes, the proposal was to allow its EPFO’s subscribers to pledge their future PF contribution to buy low-cost houses. Moreover, to support this proposal, the expert committee has presented a report on housing facility for the subscribers, which was presented to the trustees for their analysis.

In favor of the proposal, the committee has commonly recommended this scheme to facilitate subscribers to buy houses and get an advance from their PF accumulation, as well as they will be allowed to pledge their future PF contribution as EMI (Equated Monthly Installment) payment.

Under the proposed scheme, there will be a Tripartite Agreement between the member, bank/housing agency and EPFO for pledging future PF contributions as EMI payment. Moreover, the panel had suggested that the subscribers can purchase a home unit through loan taken from a bank or housing finance companies, and but hypothecation of property in based on the current.

This scheme was suggested the benefits under the scheme of Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation can also be extended to the beneficiaries of the scheme. Although, the panel had suggested this scheme for those low income formal workers, who are EPFO subscribers, and could not be able to buy a house during their entire service period.

This housing scheme will favor to all EPFO subscribers who are low income formal workers, and want to buy their own house. Through this scheme, they can easily pledge their future PF contribution to buy low-cost houses.