New proposal to benefit form labour

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, FEB. 12. The Labour Ministry is reformulating the legislative proposal for the benefit of the agricultural workers. It will also aim at meeting the basic needs of the agricultural workers in relation to health care, safety and social security.

Though divergent views were still being expressed by certain quarters in relation to the proposals, the Ministry is going ahead with the exercise in the light of the differing views aired from time to time on vital issues concerning the agricultural workers as a consensus could not be reached on them. In the meantime, the Ministry expects the Standing Committee on the labour to deliberate upon evolving an action plan for upgradation of health care, safety and social security for agricultural workers besides other things in both long and short term perspectives. The Standing Committee is scheduled to meet shortly in this regard. This would help in giving the proposals a final shape.

A consensus on a central legislation for agricultural workers has been eluding the country for more than last 25 years. Divergent views had emerged on the draft Bill prepared by the Labour Ministry during the State Labour Ministers Conference in 1981. Since then the matter has been discussed at various levels without any convergence of views.

Agricultural workers, who constitute the largest segment of the country's work force, continue to remain deprived of the basic needs of even most elementary health care, safety and social security measures. The social policy, the Ministry feels, needs to focus on this areas so that not only health and longevity of this vast section of rural workers improves but along with it productivity increases and the quality of life is enhanced.

Further since the land distribution in India is highly skewed with a sharp employers-employees relationship, there is no long term relationship between employers and employees because of the seasonality of work. Rural-rural and rural-urban migration of agricultural workers in search of work further adds to their vulnerability and therefore need for a legislation to protect their interests.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Other States
Previous : Task force for smoother traffic
Next     : Census to include disabled date