“Enhancement of social security coverage of the workforce is a key priority of the Government of India, and employers and workers across the North Eastern Region should make full use of the facilitating schemes introduced under the Social Security Code, 2020,” said Shri Shishir Kant Jha, Additional Central Provident Fund Commissioner, North Eastern Region, while addressing a media briefing organised at the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), Regional Office, Guwahati, today.

Speaking about the enhancement of the EPF wage ceiling, Shri Jha said that the Ministry of Labour & Employment notified on September 17, 2026, an increase in the wage ceiling for mandatory EPF coverage from ₹15,000 to ₹25,000 per month. The decision is expected to bring more than 51 lakh additional employees within the ambit of mandatory EPFO coverage, thereby significantly widening social security protection for workers.

He said that existing EPFO members will continue as members and contributions already remitted at the earlier wage ceiling will remain unaffected. New entrants earning up to ₹25,000 in EPF wages will be eligible for the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS). The pension contribution under EPS will be calculated on wages up to ₹25,000, at 8.33 per cent, subject to a maximum contribution of ₹2,083 per month.

Shri Jha advised employers to review the records of employees earning between ₹15,000 and ₹25,000 per month, update their payroll records and file the Electronic Challan-cum-Return (ECR) for enrolling new members and updating contributions of existing members in accordance with the revised wage ceiling and applicable EPFO provisions.

Shri Jha said that the Government of India has recently introduced several facilitating schemes aimed at enhancing social security coverage of the workforce. He urged employers and workers across Assam, Tripura, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and the wider North Eastern Region to make use of these schemes. The initiatives provide opportunities for employers to regularise past gaps, settle old disputes, avail incentives for employment generation and extend social security coverage to a larger section of workers, he said.

Shri Jha also highlighted the benefits of other initiatives, including the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana (PM-VBRY), Employees’ Enrolment Campaign (EEC), 2026 and VISHWAS, 2026. He encouraged employers and workers to avail themselves of these initiatives to strengthen social security coverage and facilitate employment generation and compliance.

The media briefing was also addressed by Shri Gaurav Srivastava, Regional Provident Fund Commissioner, Regional Office, Guwahati, and Shri M. Ngullie, Regional Provident Fund Commissioner, Zonal Office, North Eastern Region.

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