More than 16,600 crore rupees are held in Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) accounts and by holders of Indian Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) policies that have not yet been claimed by any claimant.
According to official data obtained in response to an RTI request, as of March 31, 2026, over 9300 crore rupees in unclaimed amounts were held in approximately 3.1 million inactive PF accounts.
The Ministry of Labour clarified that it does not declare any PF account 'unclaimed'; instead, they are classified as inactive accounts. An analysis of official statistics shows that the largest sum of unclaimed funds is accumulated in inactive EPF accounts, amounting to 9,330.56 crore rupees.
In addition to the funds in PF accounts, LIC had an unclaimed amount of 5,564.55 crore rupees from policyholders. When summing the funds in inactive EPF accounts and the unclaimed funds from LIC (including accrued income), the total amount reached 16,649.06 crore rupees.
If a person has recently changed jobs and has not withdrawn the PF funds accumulated with the previous employer, they need to consider several important points. Before applying for PF funds, one should find all information related to the inactive EPF account, including the Member ID, PF account number, and other KYC details.
The possibility of applying for funds without using a UAN is also mentioned.
Stock market indices Sensex and Nifty opened in the red on Wednesday. The decline was triggered by renewed threats of tariffs on the pharmaceutical sector from US President Trump, as well as a sharp rise in oil prices amid escalating geopolitical tensions in the West Asia region.
The BSE Sensex index began the trading session with a drop of nearly 388 points, representing 0.50 percent from a level of 77,081. The index reached a low of 76,722.21, losing 748 points or 0.96 percent. Similarly, the Nifty 50 index fell by 90 points or 0.37 percent, opening at 24,097. This index, comprising 50 stocks, showed a minimum of 23,973.70, dropping by 214 points or 0.88 percent.
By 10:50 AM, both key indices were trading close to their daily lows: Sensex showed 76,832.77, indicating a decrease of 637 points or 0.82 percent, while Nifty was at 24,009.30, down 178 points or 0.74 percent.
At the sectoral level, the Nifty Pharma and Realty indices declined by more than 1.5 percent each. Declines were also observed in the Nifty PSU Bank, Financial Services, IT, Metal, and Oil & Gas indices. The only exception was Nifty Auto, which demonstrated a growth of almost 1 percent during the day.
In the broader market context, Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 traded down by 0.65 percent and 1 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, the India VIX index rose to 12.94, increasing by more than 2.5 percent, signaling increased caution and volatility in the near term.
The Nifty Pharma and healthcare indices became the main laggards among the components of Nifty, leading to a nearly one percent drop in the main index. The fall occurred after US President Donald Trump announced a proposal to introduce a phased tariff regime on imported generic drugs aimed at stimulating domestic pharmaceutical production within the United States. The Nifty Pharma index dropped by 1.7 percent, reaching 25,639.70 during intraday trading.
Tushar Manudhane, Senior Vice President of Healthcare Institutional Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, noted that '90 percent of prescription generics are imported into the US, which effectively increases the tariff for everyone supplying the US market, and this is not specific to India.'
The rise in oil prices also contributed to the downturn in the domestic stock market. On Wednesday, prices rose by more than 1.57 percent, pushing Brent crude futures above $92.58 per barrel, while WTI crude futures increased by 1.34 percent, trading at $85.68 per barrel.
OMC stocks, representing state-owned oil companies including Bharat Petroleum Corporation, fell by 1.52 percent to 314 rupees per share, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation decreased by 2.13 percent to 398 rupees per share, and Indian Oil Corporation lost 0.77 percent, settling at 142 rupees on Wednesday after Brent crude prices jumped to $92 per barrel.
On Wednesday, the rupee opened weaker against the US dollar. The national currency weakened by 10 paise against the US dollar, reaching 96.34 compared to Tuesday's close at 94.24 per dollar.
Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury at Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, stated that 'traders continue to monitor the participation of the Reserve Bank of India through public sector banks to smooth out volatility. The central bank seems to allow gradual adjustment, preventing erratic movements.'
V. K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investment, believes that the ongoing conflict between the US and Iran and the rise in Brent crude prices will put pressure on markets, despite positive news in other areas. He added that 'market declines create opportunities to buy fundamentally sound stocks. Broader market superiority may continue in the short term.'
Rajesh Palvia, Head of Research at Axis Direct, noted that technically the market continues to trade cautiously below the 24,300 mark. He added: 'Sustainable growth above this level could revive momentum towards 24,500–24,550, while immediate support is at 24,100. A decisive break below this level could trigger further weakness towards 23,950. Any easing in crude oil prices would significantly improve market sentiment and serve as a trigger for a stronger recovery.'
