On November 10, 2020, the Ministry of Finance gave its nod for the creation of the first ever “National Database of Unorganised Workers (NDUW)” with an expected outlay of Rs 650 crore. In this regard, Ministry of Labour & Employment has envisaged development of NDUW seeded with Aadhaar.
- This project will include migrant workers also and the benefits to be provided through this database will encourage them to enroll on the website.
- Common Service Centre (CSC) can be used in this process.
- This decision has been taken after the problems faced by migrant labourers in COVID-19 pandemic.
Benefits of database:
–Platform for employer and potential employee
–Helpful in providing welfare schemes or implementing social security initiatives by the government.
–Tracking of movement of labour in a situation like a Covid-19 induced lockdown so they can be assisted when in desperation.
What Code Says about the welfare of Migrants?
The Code on Occupational Health, Safety and Working Conditions enables the provision for maintaining a database of migrant workers to help in targeting, skill mapping and utilising government schemes effectively.
- The Code also ensures that migrant workers get journey allowance once a year from employers.
Recent Related News:
i.On October 8, 2020, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat launched the Mukhya Mantri Saur Swarojgar Yojana at the Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali Auditorium in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.The targeted beneficiaries include youths and migrant workers, who returned home after leaving jobs in various parts of the country due to pandemic.
ii.On October 21, 2020, a report “Human Mobility, Shared Opportunities: A Review of the 2009 Human Development Report and the Way Ahead” was released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) stating how governments can shape migration to benefit development and boost recovery.
About Ministry of Finance:
Union Minister– Nirmala Sitharaman
Minister of State (MoS)– Anurag Singh Thakur
