Guwahati: The Assam Tea Employees Provident Fund Organisation (AT- EPFO) has earned a gross amount of Rs 966 crore from the investment of the provident fund corpus dues in the year 2021-22.

An official statement today said that the Board of Trustees of ATEPFO has decided to declare a gross interest in the PF account at the rate of 8.5 percent for the year 2021-22, Of that amount, 7 percent will go directly to the PF accounts of the PF members and the remaining 1.5 percent will go to the pension fund formed for the members. The board, at a meeting, held récently, took note of the increasing numbers of defaulting tea estates, especially the gardens managed by the big companies like Apeejay, Williamson Magor, Warren Tea, etc., and decided to take immediate steps for realising all the outstanding PF dues in the greater interest of the tea workers.

The board also expressed serious concern about the non-payment of PF dues against the tea estates under ATCL. However, the board thanked Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for making a budgetary provision on account of the arrear PF dues of Rs 142 crore of the gardens under ATCL to be paid to ATEPFO as outstanding PF dues.