Lok Sabha Question No. 1476 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-07-01
Subject: Migrant Construction Workers
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Khagen Murmu, Sukanta Majumdar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1476 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.07.2019

## MIGRANT CONSTRUCTION WORKERS

1476.  SHRI KHAGEN MURMU: DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR:

Will  the  Minister  of  LABOUR  AND  EMPLOYMENT  be  pleased  to state:

- (a)whether migrant construction workers are entitled to housing and other social security benefits apart from minimum wages, overtime payments and weekly offs but the implementation of this clause of the labour law has been abysmal;
- (b)if so, the reasons therefor;
- (c)whether around Rs 20,000 crore collected through construction cess is lying unused, if so, the details of cess collected and utilised during the last three years;
- (d)whether  the  amount  collected  through  construction  cess  should  be used for providing rental accommodation to migrant workers, if so, the Government's reaction thereon; and
- (e)the steps taken by the Government for welfare of construction workers in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (IC) FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (SHRI SANTOSH KUMAR GANGWAR)

(a) & (b): Inter-State  Migrant  Workmen  (Regulation  of  Employment  & Conditions  of  Service)  Act  1979  provides  for  residential  accommodation facilities  as  per  Rule  45  of  the  Inter-State  Migrant  Workmen  (RE&CS) Central  Rules,  1980  to  migrant  workmen  including  migrant  construction workers covered under the said rules. For the purpose of enforcement of the provisions, the setup under the Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) carries  out  regular  inspections  under  I.S.M.W  (RE&CS)  Act  and  Central Rules to ensure the compliance of the provisions of the Act. The details of the same is enclosed as Annexure -I.

(c): The  Building  and  Other  Construction  Workers  (Regulation  of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 provides safety, health and  welfare  measures  for  the  building  and  other  construction  workers (BOCW).  For  the  purposes  of  the  above  said  Act,  a  cess  is  levied  and collected  at  the  rate  of  1%  of  the  cost  of  construction  by  the  State Governments under the Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Cess Act, 1996. The States, through their respective State Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Boards, constituted under BOCW Act, utilize the cess fund in terms of Section 22 of BOCW Act, 1996. The States and Union Territories have collected around Rs. 49688.07 crore and spent an amount Rs. 19379.922 Crore upto 31.03.2019.

- (d): Section  34  of  the  Building  and  Other  Construction  Workers (Regulation  of  Employment  &  Conditions  of  Service)  Act,  1996  makes  it mandatory  for  the  employer  to  provide,  free  of  charges  and  within  the work  site or as near to it as may  be  possible, temporary  living accommodation,  with  separate  cooking  place,  bathing,  washing  and lavatory facilities, to all building workers employed by him for such period as the building or other construction work is in progress. Further, in order to  mitigate  hardships that a BOC worker faces while in search of work, the States have been advised to take proactive steps to facilitate transit accommodation/labour shed cum night shelter, mobile toilets and mobile creches to such BOC workers out of the State BOCW welfare cess fund as prescribed.
- Section 22 of the BOCW(RECS)Act, 1996, provides for following
- (e): welfare measures for BOC workers:
- (i) provide immediate assistance to a beneficiary in case of accident;
- (ii) make payment of pension to the beneficiaries who have completed  the age of sixty years;
- (iii)  sanction  loans  and  advances  to  a  beneficiary  for  construction  of  a houses not exceeding such amount and on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed;
- (iv)  pay  such  amount  in  connection  with  premia  for  Group  Insurance Scheme of the beneficiaries as it may deem fit;
- (v)  give  such  financial  assistance  for  the  education  of  children  of  the beneficiaries as may be prescribed;
- (vi)  meet  such  medical  expenses  for  treatment  of  major  ailments  of  a beneficiary or, such dependent, as may be prescribed;
- (vii) make payment of maternity benefit to the female beneficiaries; and (viii)  make  provisions  and  improvement  of  such  other  welfare  measures and facilities as may be prescribed.

The  State  Building  and  Other  Construction  Workers  Welfare Boards of the States have formulated welfare schemes for BOC workers based on the above.

The  States/UTs  have  also  been  requested  to  utilise  BOCW welfare cess for the purpose of  extending coverage of the social security schemes  of  Aam  Aadmi  Bima  Yojana  (AABY)  converged  with  Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), Aayushman Bharat and Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan Dhan Yojana(PM-SYM) to BOC workers to provide life and disability cover, health and maternity cover and old age pension by making payment of  the  State  share/beneficiary  share  towards  these  schemes  out  of  the cess fund.

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## Annexure referred in part (a) & (b) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1476 for 01.07.2019

## ISMW (RE&CS) Act, 1979

|   S.No. | Particulars                     |   2015-16 |   2016-17 |   2017-18 |   2018-19 Up to March, 2019 |
|---------|---------------------------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|-----------------------------|
|       1 | No. of Inspections Conducted    |       173 |       122 |       209 |                         185 |
|       2 | No. of Irregularities detected  |      2744 |      2214 |      2952 |                        3463 |
|       3 | No. of Irregularities Rectified |      2240 |      1848 |      1939 |                        2423 |
|       4 | No. of Prosecutions Launched    |        61 |        52 |        57 |                          84 |
|       5 | No. of Convictions              |        44 |        59 |        47 |                          38 |

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