Following are some better returns investment plans than FD:
* Public Provident Fund – The current rate of interest for PPF account is 7.4% p.a. You can watch our YouTube video on PPF for more detailed information – https://youtu.be/HW07P7yXFWU
* National Savings Schemes – The current rate of interest is 6.8% p.a with a 5 year lock-in period. The tax benefits of Section 80C (i.e, exemption upto Rs1.5 Lakhs) are available
* RBI Floating Rate Savings Bonds – The current rate of interest is 7.15% p.a with 7 years of lock-in. The interest rate of RBI bonds is always 0.35% higher than National Savings Certificates.
* Tax Free Bonds – These bonds are issued by government owned and public sector undertakings. They are available for 10 yrs, 15 yrs and 20 yrs as per requirement. The interest rate varies between 7% to 9% pa. As the name suggests, the income from these bonds is tax free.
* Mutual Funds – There are mutual fund schemes which provide fixed income. Under Monthly Income Plans, the investor receives a regular monthly income in the form of dividends. The dividends are tax-free.
* National Pension Scheme (NPS) – Any individual citizen between 18 to 65 years of age can open an NPS account. The average ROI for NPS since it’s inception is around 10%. It is a government-sponsored pension scheme. The proceeds of NPS are tax-free.