The Hindu 27.01.2011
Civic bodies under EPF ambit
All municipalities, municipal councils and municipal corporations spread
over the territorial jurisdiction of the Sub Regional Office of the
Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), i.e., Visakhapatnam,
Vizianagaram and Srikakulam districts, have been brought under the
purview of the Employees Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions
Act, 1952. This has been done as a sequel to the recent gazette
notification issued by the Government of India bringing all employees
and workers of civic bodies, including those engaged by contractors.
Civic bodies have to extend social security benefits to employees, who
have not been covered so far, and those employed by contractors for
execution of various works on behalf of the municipal bodies, under the
EPF & MP Act, 1952, according to Regional PF Commissioner Ajeet
Kumar. The move will benefit thousands of workers employed by or through
the contractors spread over the three territorial districts.
All contractors engaged by civic bodies, who are engaging employees
for execution of various infrastructural works, i.e., laying of roads,
drains, water pipelines, building, electricity, other civic amenities
and sanitation works, including sweeping and cleaning of roads and
drains, should arrange for extension of PF benefits to their employees.
Though contract workers engaged in cleaning and sweeping operations
are already covered by some of the civic bodies in the region, a large
chunk of employees working in civil and engineering works have not been
covered. The GoI notification dated January 8, 2011, makes it mandatory
for all the municipal corporations/municipal bodies/municipalities to
extend PF benefits to all categories of workers engaged by them through
contractors. It also makes it mandatory for Municipal Councils,
Municipalities who have not yet been registered with the EPFO by
obtaining PF Code Number to extend the provisions of the EPF & MP
Act, 1952 in respect of employees engaged by them. The EPFO, SRO,
Visakhapatnam, is in the process of issuing notices to various
municipalities, municipal corporations and municipal councils falling
within its territorial jurisdiction for obtaining PF Code Numbers.
Mr. Ajeet Kumar appealed to all civic bodies to obtain the EPF Code
Number and extend the provisions of the scheme to all the workers
engaged by them and through contractors with effect from January 8.
