Rs 5,000 more for construction workers; Delhi govt to launch fresh registration drive
The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Delhi labour minister Gopal Rai on Monday. At least 39,600 construction are registered with the Delhi building and other construction workers (BoCW) board.
The Delhi government on Monday said it will disburse Rs 5,000 to all registered construction workers in the city -- just as it did last month -- and launch a fresh 10-day online registration drive from Friday to help more workers benefit from its schemes.
The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Delhi labour minister Gopal Rai on Monday. At least 39,600 construction are registered with the Delhi building and other construction workers (BoCW) board.
“Workers engaged in construction work in Delhi will once again get Rs 5,000 this month for their sustenance from the Delhi government,” chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a tweet in Hindi.
The Delhi Asangathit Nirman Mazdoor Union welcomed the move.
“Last month, the Delhi government had announced and disbursed a one-time compensation of Rs 5,000 to every worker registered with the BoCW board. Today, I took a meeting of the labour department and it has been decided that the same compensation shall be repeated this month as well. So, we will start disbursing the second round of Rs 5,000 to the account of every registered worker from Tuesday,” Rai said.
While the Delhi government has allowed construction activity in the city, it has permitted operations only at in-situ projects where workers are available on site, in line with the Union government’s guidelines
The state labour minister said the government has also decided to start a new registration drive for construction workers, and that this time it will be done online.
“We had received a lot of complaints from other workers that they were not able to renew their enrolment and the new ones were finding it difficult to get registered with the Board. Hence, we are changing the registration process which was going on to date,” Rai said.
“From May 15, the Delhi government will start an online registration drive for construction workers. A dedicated website for this will also be launched on the same day. With this, any one from anywhere can get register with the Board. This drive will go on till May 25,” he said.
The minister explained the process will require an applicant to upload copies of all the required documents. After May 25, the labour department will begin the verification process. Those who submit their applications online will be given an appointment for physical verification of their documents by the department. The person will have to go to a labour department office nearest to him.
“The department has been directed to ensure strict social distancing norms during the time when the applicants start visiting the office. A system has been devised in which only 50 applicants will be called every day for verification. At the office, a token system will be enforced to prevent overcrowding or fights,” Rai said.
The Delhi Asangathit Nirman Mazdoor Union pointed to the need to expanding the number of registered workers.
“Around four years ago, Delhi had over three lakh (300,000) registered workers but now the number has dropped to only about 40,000 because most of them do not renew their enrolment. Construction workers need to renew their enrolment with the BoCW board annually by depositing Rs 20,” said Thaneshwar Adigaur, secretary of the union.
Adigaur also said that the government will have to ensure there is no pendency in the number of applications. “There are nine labour offices where applicants will be called. If each office handles even 100 cases every day, there would still be a high possibility that applications would keep pilling up. So, the verification process should be done in a timebound manner,” he said.