Sushri Shobha Karandlaje Emphasizing Social Protection and Employment Generation at Regional Meeting

In her opening remarks, Sushri Karandlaje underscored the importance of labour reforms in India's ambition to become the world’s largest economy by 2047.

Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje, chaired the second regional meeting on labour reforms and employment in Chandigarh, engaging with northern States and Union Territories (UTs) including Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Chandigarh, and Rajasthan. This meeting is part of a series of consultations organized by the Ministry of Labour & Employment to strengthen cooperative federalism.

In her opening remarks, Sushri Karandlaje underscored the importance of labour reforms in India's ambition to become the world’s largest economy by 2047. She called for moving beyond the colonial-era labour laws, noting that the government has simplified 29 laws into four Labour Codes to modernize and harmonize the system.

She also emphasized Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of providing "cradle to grave" social protection for unorganized workers through platforms like the e-Shram portal. Karandlaje reaffirmed the government’s commitment to extending the benefits of the Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) across all districts in the country.

Sumita Dawra, Secretary of the Ministry of Labour & Employment (MoL&E), highlighted the need for greater alignment between State/UT draft rules and the Centre's Labour Codes for a seamless regulatory framework. She urged States/UTs to close gaps in their labour reforms and integrate with the e-Shram portal, which has already registered over 30 crore unorganized workers. The portal serves as a one-stop solution for workers to access social protection, welfare schemes, and employment services.

The meeting also focused on the newly launched Building and Other Construction Workers (BoCW) Management Information System (MIS) portal. Dawra encouraged States/UTs to register their workers on this platform to improve data-driven decision-making for worker welfare policies.

The discussion also touched on employment generation initiatives, including the Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) scheme announced in the Union Budget 2024-25. Dawra stressed the importance of collecting employment data, enhancing job quality, and fostering collaboration between States/UTs and the Centre.

Representatives from the participating States/UTs shared their insights, best practices, and concerns, which were noted by the ministry for further action. They requested access to worker data from the e-Shram portal at the district level for faster identification of beneficiaries of welfare schemes.

The next regional consultation is scheduled to be held in Rajkot for western States and UTs next week.