Mutual Funds in India: Evolution, Significance and Need for Study in Reference to ELSS Mutual Funds
梳理印度共同基金的发展历程，分析其对小投资者的意义，并强调研究ELSS基金的必要性，旨在帮助缺乏金融知识的小投资者做出更明智的税务储蓄投资决策。
A large number of investment avenues are available for investors in India. Risk and return are the major issues which an investor faces to maximize his returns while choosing investing avenues depending on his objectives, preferences and needs. The advent of mutual funds has helped in garnering the investible funds of this category of investors in a significant way. Mutual fund is one of the most viable investment options for the small investor as it offers an opportunity to invest in a diversified, professionally managed basket of securities at a relatively low cost. Mutual funds offer different schemes for different investment objectives. ELSS funds are one of the best avenues to save tax; also the investor gets the potential upside of equity exposure. Indian investors have little information to take prudent investment decisions. Such information drought is the breeding ground for misguidance, leading the investor to opt for a particular scheme without an in-depth analysis, resulting in dissatisfaction over fund performance. The present paper aims to identify and address this basic issue in detail, covering the history of mutual fund evolution, their significance for the small investor and the need for study of mutual funds and the ELSS funds. The study aims to benefit the tax-burdened small investor who is barely financially literate and has little time (or energy) to research before buying a fund.