Lok Sabha Question No. 1152 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-09-19
Subject: Suicides by Migrant Workers
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Kanimozhi Karunanidhi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1152

TO BE ANSWERED ON 19.09.2020

## SUICIDES BY MIGRANT WORKERS

## 1152. SHRIMATI KANIMOZHI KARUNANIDHI:

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

- (a)whether there have been increased cases of migrant labourers' suicides,  if  so,  the  number  and  details  of  such  cases  and  the  steps taken to reduce the same;
- (b)the  measures to curb suicides due to increased urban unemployment; and
- (c)the  steps  being  taken  to  alleviate  the  number  of  suicides  specifically among the low income group people of the society?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) to (c): During  Covid  -  19  pandemic  and  subsequent  lockdown,  more than one crore migrant workers returned to their home state. A statement giving the numbers of migrant workers state-wise is annexed.

A number of measures have been taken by the Government to alleviate the hardship of the migrant workers. These include the following:

1. In order to resolve the grievances of migrant workers  during lockdown, Ministry set up 20 Control Rooms all over the country.  During lockdown,  more  than  15000  complaints  of  the  workers  were  resolved through these Control Rooms and due to the intervention of Ministry more than two lakh workers were paid their due wages amounting to about Rs. 295 crores.

2. Immediately after the lockdown, directions were sent from Ministry of  Labour  &  Employment  to  all  the  State  Governments/UTs  instructing them to provide financial assistance to construction workers from Building &  Other  Construction  Workers'  Cess  Fund.    It  is  estimated  that  a  high proportion  of  migrant  workers  are  construction  workers.    Till  date  1.83 crore construction workers have been provided approximately Rs.  5000  crore  directly  in  their  bank  accounts  from  Building  &  Other Construction Workers' Cess Fund being maintained by various States.
3. After  the  lockdown,  Pradhan  Mantri  Garib  Kalyan  Yojana  with  a financial package of Rs. 1.7 lakh crore was launched to help poor, needy and  unorganised  sector  workers  of  the  country.    Under  this  package, around 80 crore persons have been provided 5 Kg. Wheat/Rice and 1 Kg. pulses.  Free of cost food grains will now be provided upto November, 2020 to all the beneficiaries.
4. Per day wages under MGNREGA have been enhanced from Rs. 182 to Rs. 202.
5. PM SVANidhi Scheme has been launched to facilitate collateral free working capital loan upto Rs.10,000/- of one-year tenure, to approximately, 50 lakh street vendors, to resume their businesses.
6. In order to facilitate employment of migrant workers who have gone back to their Home State, Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyan has been initiated in 116 districts in Mission Mode.  Under this campaign, rural infrastructure  would  be  built  with  involvement  of  these  migrant  workers and about Rs. 50,000/- crores would be spent for this purpose.
7. Rupees  Twenty  lakh  crore  financial  package  under  'AatmNirbhar Bharat' has been launched specifically to create employment opportunities, for migrant workers, workers of unorganized sector, strengthening of MSME Sector and promoting rural economy.
8. Ministry  of  Housing  and  Urban  Affairs  (MoHUA)  has  launched  a scheme for Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs), which is a subScheme  under  Pradhan  Mantri  Awas  Yojana-Urban  (PMAY-U)  to  create vibrant,  sustainable  &  inclusive  Affordable  Rental  Housing  avenues  for urban migrants/poor.

- 9        In  order  to  provide  minimum  financial  assistance  to  the  workers through  their  EPF  Account,  Ministry  of  Labour  &  Employment  under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana has permitted all the EPF members to withdraw 75% of their total provident fund deposited in their EPF Account. Till date, about Rs. 39,000/- crore have been withdrawn by the member of EPFO.
10.    It  has  been  decided  to  extend  the  scheme  of  Atal  Beemit  Kalyan Yojana of Employees' State Insurance Corporation for another one year i.e. from 1 st  July, 2020 to 30 th  June, 2021. It has also been decided to enhance the rate of unemployment relief under the scheme to 50% of wages from earlier rate of 25% along with relaxation of eligibility conditions for insured workers who have lost their employment due to COVID-19 pandemic and related  lockdown.  The  enhanced  relief  and  relaxed  eligibility  conditions are applicable for the period 24.03.2020 to 31.12.2020

Information  on  suicides  of  migrant  workers  is  being  collected  from State Governments.

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| SL No   | Name of the State                  | No. of Migrant workers belonging to this district who have returned to their home State   |
|---------|------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| 1       | Andhra Pradesh                     | 32,571                                                                                    |
| 2       | Andaman and Nicobar                | 4,960                                                                                     |
| 3       | Arunachal Pradesh                  | 2,871                                                                                     |
| 4       | Assam                              | 4,26,441                                                                                  |
| 5       | Bihar                              | 15,00,612                                                                                 |
| 6       | Chandigarh                         | 0                                                                                         |
| 7       | Chhattisgarh                       |                                                                                           |
| 8       | Dadra &Nagar Haveli and Daman &Diu | 43,747                                                                                    |
| 9       | Delhi                              | 2,047                                                                                     |
| 10      | Goa                                |                                                                                           |
| 11      | Gujarat                            |                                                                                           |
| 12      | Haryana                            | 1,289                                                                                     |
| 13      | Himachal Pradesh                   | 0                                                                                         |
| 14      | Jammu &Kashmir                     | 48,780                                                                                    |
| 15      | Jharkhand                          | 5,30,047                                                                                  |
| 16      | Karnataka                          | 1,34,438                                                                                  |
| 17      | Kerala                             | 3,11,124                                                                                  |
| 18      | Ladakh                             | 50                                                                                        |
| 19      | Lakshadweep                        | 456                                                                                       |
| 20      | Madhya Pradesh                     | 7,53,581                                                                                  |
| 21      | Maharashtra                        | 1,82,990                                                                                  |
| 22      | Manipur                            | 12,338                                                                                    |
| 23      | Meghalaya                          | 4,266                                                                                     |
| 24      | Mizoram                            |                                                                                           |
| 25      | Nagaland                           | 11,750                                                                                    |
| 26      | Odisha                             |                                                                                           |
| 27      | Pondicherry                        | 1,694                                                                                     |
| 28      | Punjab                             | 5,15,642                                                                                  |
| 29      | Rajasthan                          | 13,08,130                                                                                 |
| 30      | Sikkim                             | 33,015                                                                                    |
| 31      | Tamil Nadu                         | 72,145                                                                                    |
| 32      | Telangana                          | 37,050                                                                                    |
| 33      | Tripura                            | 34,247                                                                                    |
| 34      | Uttar Pradesh                      | 32,49,638                                                                                 |
| 35      | Uttarakhand                        | 0                                                                                         |
| 36      | West Bengal                        | 13,84,693                                                                                 |
|         | Total                              | 1,06,40,612                                                                               |

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