The interest rate for Employee Provident Fund has been raised to 8.8% again, days after the government decided to lower it to 8.7%. In February, Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya had announced an EPF rate of 8.8%, but on Tuesday he told the Lok Sabha that the Centre had now ratified an interest rate of 8.7%. The Central Board of Trustees for the EPF Organisation, which advises the government on the rate, had recommended 8.8%, but the finance ministry had decided to go against it.

On Wednesday, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said there was no plan to reverse the decision to lower the EPF to below the CBT’s recommendation, arguing that the earnings from 2015-16 were not enough, and that the proposed 8.8% would draw on the surplus from last year to pay employees. However, according to The Indian Express, the CBT’s calculations showed that there is a “sizeable surplus even if 8.8% interest were to be paid”.

The move to lower the rate was met with criticism from trade unions given that the EPF is a major savings option for working class or salaried people. The government has flip-flopped on the EPF since the General Budget was announced in February, issuing unpopular moves and then rolling them back.