Yes, small savings are a big hit with the middle class and scores of tax savers, who find the simplicity and assured returns offered by them a smart way to save money, and in some cases like the PPF, save on taxes as well. So, when on March 18 the government announced steep cuts in their returns it was just acting on what it had suggested a month earlier when it had mentioned its plans to moving interest rates on small saving instruments closer to market rates. In fact, it had cut rates on short-term post office deposits by 0.25 per cent immediately, clearly indicating what was next to follow with small savings.
Assured returns on small savings have been fluctuating since 2011, when the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF) was reviewed and the rates on these products were benchmarked to government securities (G-secs) of similar maturity periods with a positive spread of 25 basis points (bps). Ever since, the government notifies the interest rates applicable for the year on various small savings instruments before April 1 every year. As far as the spread is concerned, in case of the senior citizens savings scheme (SCSS), the mark-up was 100 bps, and for the recently launched Sukanya Samriddhi Account, it was 75 bps.