Religious bodies should offer funds, says FICO

Minna Zutshi

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, April 2

The Textile Division Head of the Federation of Industrial and Commercial Organisation (FICO) has appealed to religious institutions to voluntarily offer a major chunk of their funds to the government. In a letter written to the PM, suggesting measures to help the MSMEs prepare for long term and survive after normalisation from the current situation, the FICO Textile Division Head, Ajit Lakra, said: “The government should come out with an ordinance to acquire these funds to comfortably save the nation from this pandemic of Covid-19. If the people and the country survive, they will again donate enough money to these religious institutions. This kind of money is always donated for the wellbeing of humanity. This is the most critical time.”

Another suggestion is that the unclaimed fund with the EPFO Department be used in this extreme and unprecedented situation. “The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) Department has about Rs 40,000 crore lying unclaimed with them. This is the most critical time when the employees and employers should be helped through this fund.

The government should waive the collection of PF contribution of all employees and employers for three months and compensate the employees with this unclaimed fund.

This will not make any major dent to social security. In any case, the security is for rainy days and that is just what the present times are. Moreover, what is the point of putting so much burden on employers that they themselves collapse and insecurity of jobs arises,” he added.