The Labour Welfare Department is entrusted to enforce labour laws and implement welfare schemes for workers. The recent important initiatives undertaken by the Department has once again underlined the concern, our dynamic Chief Minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma has for the welfare of workers all over Assam.
In March last year, the Chief Minister inaugurated the automation of e-services undertaken by our Department. Accordingly, 16 services have become fully automated. Here, applicants instantly receive their licences/registrations upon successful completion of the application process. As on August 31, a total of 1.64 lakh applications have been received, and processed under the Commissionerate of Labour. It is for this far-reaching initiative that the Department was honoured with the prestigious Karmashree Award 2023 for facilitating the ‘Ease of Doing Business’ project. It is a crowning glory for the Department.
Whereas the Commissionerate of Labour used all possible means to facilitate ease of doing business, it did not overlook violations of the rights of labour, especially rights of children. It carried out a month-long inspection drive called “Action Month” aiming to curtail instances of child labour wherein 237 children/adolescents were rescued with 89 FIRs lodged against their ‘employers’. Till date, 1072 children/adolescents have been rescued.
A majority of the existing labour acts have been subsumed under four labour codes namely: 1) Code on Wages. 2) Industrial Relations Code. 3) Social Security Code 4) OSHW Code. The State rules under all four codes have been formulated after due consultation with stakeholders and adequate research. The codes are days away from being enacted.
Besides, the Government of Assam has enacted the Assam Transport Workers Social Security Scheme 2020 to safeguard the interests of motor transport workers in the State and develop a suitable welfare programme for them.
Keeping in view the difficulties faced by those seeking employment outside the State and on foreign land, the proposed Assam Private Placement Agencies for Recruitment of Workers (Regulation) Rules 2024 has been notified. It aims to regulate private placement agencies to ensure the safety of these workers.
The Department has been consistent in using technology to make life easier for labourers and their family members. The use of technology to facilitate eShram ex-gratia, E-Registration of construction workers, online DBT, online cess collection and the soon-to-be launched Nirman Sakhi Portal are pointers in this direction. In fact, for the year 2021-2022, Assam was awarded for being the second-best North Eastern States in terms of registration coverage under the eShram portal. The results have also come fast and handy. For example, the online registration module enhanced the number of registrations of construction workers up to 7.25 lakh.
The use of DBT for disbursing welfare benefits has helped the Department to serve 38,126 workers in the year 2023-2024. The amount disbursed was ₹67.12 cr. As of now, ₹430.12 cr has been disbursed to these registered beneficiaries by the Assam Building & Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Board. The Board has enrolled EGRAS to buoy up collection of cess from various Departments and organisations. As on March 31, the amount collected stood at ₹2,557.6 cr.
The Board has also facilitated the availability of PM-JAY benefits to its registered beneficiaries besides facilitating the skill development training of their and that of their dependents in various locations such as Gogamukh (Dhemaji), Ballamguri (Kokrajhar) and Dhamdhama (Nalbari).
In a visionary approach, we have decided to provide 50% reservation of seats to the registered BOC workers and their family members in the educational institutions (degree colleges) to be set up through the Board across Assam. Construction of five educational institutions has already begun with support from the Higher Education Department and Public Welfare Department (Buildings & NH).
A major employer of workers in our State are factories. We have registered 359 new factories in the fiscal 2023-2024 bringing about 19,465 workers within the ambit of statutory protection laid down for them.
Among the other feather on our cap is the fact that nearly 6.5 lakh ESI beneficiaries availed hassle-free & cashless medical benefits of all sorts through ESIS Dispensaries/Hospital & secondary tie-up with nursing homes. Knowing full well the importance of health, we have organised 51 health and awareness camps in different districts of Assam. A total of 37 secondary tie-up arrangements have been put in place in all the districts of Assam for greater interest of ESI beneficiaries.
The biggest employers of our workers are the tea estates spread across the length and breadth of our State. In the last financial year ending March 2024, we added 34,192 new PF members under Assam Tea Employees Provident Fund Organisation (ATEPFO). In the same financial year, 33 Tea estates/Tea factories were brought under the ambit of ATEPFO. More so, the Department has reached out to various organisations, in the private and non-government sector for the welfare of labour. One such significant initiative was tying up with Hans Foundation for provision of many ambulances in tea gardens for timely medical intervention.
We know that the welfare of our workers is always a work in progress. Hence, we are determined to work towards that objective with commitment and dedication.
