Honestly, this is one of the most misunderstood things in Indian employment law and your HR being vague is a red flag.
Here's the actual situation. The Payment of Gratuity Act 1972 says 5 years of continuous service. BUT there's a very important Supreme Court judgment — it basically said that if you've completed 4 years and 240 days in the 5th year, it counts as 5 completed years for gratuity purposes. 240 days because that's how many working days are counted in a year for most companies (if your company works 6 days a week, the threshold is 190 days in the 5th year).
You said 4 years 8 months. That's roughly 4 years and around 240+ days depending on exact dates. You almost certainly qualify.
The formula is simple:
Gratuity = (Last drawn basic + DA) × 15/26 × Number of years of service
Your basic is ₹32,000. So rough calculation:
32,000 × 15/26 × 5 = approximately ₹92,307
Not a small amount. Worth fighting for.
What most people get wrong — they assume gratuity is calculated on CTC or in-hand salary. No. It's only basic + DA. Many IT companies keep basic deliberately low to reduce this liability. Still, ₹92k is worth claiming.
What you should do right now:
1. Get your exact joining date and calculate if you've crossed 240 working days in your 5th year
2. Send a written email to HR requesting gratuity details — don't just ask verbally
3. If they refuse, you can file a complaint with the Controlling Authority under the Gratuity Act — this is usually the Labour Commissioner in your city
4. Gratuity must be paid within 30 days of it becoming payable. If delayed, company owes you interest too
Don't let HR brush this off. A 500+ employee company knows the law. They're just hoping you don't. Send that email before you resign, and keep all records of your joining date, payslips showing basic salary.
My recommendation — calculate your exact working days right now using your offer letter date. If you're past 240 days in year 5, put it in writing to HR immediately and cite the Supreme Court position on this.