By TIOL News Service

NEW DELHI, JAN 14, 2023: UNION Minister for Labour and Employment, Forest, Environment and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav inaugurated the Regional Office of Employees' provident Fund Organization (EPFO) at Alwar, Rajasthan, yesterday. Around 2 lakh workers, 12,000 establishments and 8500 pensioners from Alwar and neighboring districts of Bharatpur and Dholpur to benefit from the opening of Regional Office. The major industrial areas served by Regional Office are Bhiwadi, Khushkhera, Tapukara, Karoli, Neemrana, Behror, Gheelot, Khairthal.

Speaking on this occasion, Bhupender Yadav underscored the important role played by EPFO in providing social security to workers over the past 70 year.

Yadav highlighted that the Prime Minister's vision of good governance envisages providing governance and welfare services to the citizens at their door step. In line with the Prime Minister's vision, the upgradation of EPFO's District Office at Alwar to Regional Office shall enable the workers and employers of Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur districts to avail full scale of EPFO services at their doorstep.

Labour Secretary Ms Arti Ahuja said that EPFO is the custodian of hard-earned savings of over 6.4 crore members and their families, who dip into this collective fund in vulnerable moments, which bestows an enormous responsibility on the organization. This aspiration and the needs of the members have fueled and driven EPFO's vision to innovate and launch a series of initiatives so that social security access is available 24x7. She added that EPFO is an innovation driven social security organization aiming to extend universal coverage and ensuring Nirbadh (seamless and uninterrupted) service delivery to its stakeholders through state-of-the-art technology.

Central Provident Fund Commissioner, Mrs Neelam Shami Rao said that for the last 70 years, EPFO has been tirelessly working for safeguarding workers' interests and ensuring that their social security rights are upheld. In order to improve the functioning and efficiency of its bigger Regional Offices, EPFO is planning to bring their workload to manageable levels by carving out new Regional offices from the existing ones.  As a first step towards rationalization of the bigger offices of EPFO, Regional Office, Jaipur is bifurcated into two Regional Offices, namely, Regional Office, Jaipur and Regional Office, Alwar. The creation of new Regional Offices will enhance the access of EPFO to its stakeholders and is an effort towards achieving good governance.

The Regional Office at Alwar shall serve the workers employed in the industrial and other establishments of the districts of Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur. Earlier, the workers from the above three districts had to undertake long journey of more than 150 kms to Regional office Jaipur for their EPF related work which could not be addressed at District Office, Alwar owing to its limited functions. After upgradation of District Office at Alwar to Regional Office, these workers will be able to enjoy full range of services including claim settlement at Alwar itself, eliminating the need to travel to Jaipur, thus bringing EPFO closer to its stakeholders.

Member of Parliament (Alwar), Mahant Balaknath, Member of Parliament (Karauli-Dholpur), Dr. Manoj Rajoria, Member of Legislative Assembly Alwar (Urban), Sanjay Sharma and other dignitaries were present during the inauguration.