A key regional meeting involving central states, including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and the Union Territory of Delhi, will take place on September 30, 2024, in Lucknow. Organized by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the meeting aims to focus on critical topics such as labour reforms, the eShram-National Database of Unorganised Workers (NDUW), welfare of Building and Other Construction Workers (BoCW), initiatives under the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), and employment generation strategies.
Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje, will preside over the discussions, alongside Ms. Sumita Dawra, Secretary of the Ministry, and other senior officials from the central and state governments.
This meeting is part of an ongoing series of consultations being held nationwide. The initiative began with a meeting in Bengaluru, where southern states and Union Territories (UTs) like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala, Puducherry, and Andaman & Nicobar Islands participated. Following this, northern states and UTs including Punjab, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, and Rajasthan met in Chandigarh. The third meeting for western states and UTs took place in Rajkot, Gujarat, and the fourth in Bhubaneswar, focusing on eastern states like Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh. These discussions will continue until October 4, 2024.
During the Lucknow session, key issues such as aligning state and central regulations under Labour Codes, strategies for employment data collection, and insights on the Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) Scheme announced in the 2024-25 Union Budget will be covered. Deliberations will also include the development of the e-Shram portal as a comprehensive platform for unorganized workers, improving access to social security, and expanding the coverage of Central welfare schemes for BoCW workers. Upgrading employment exchanges and addressing challenges in labour reforms are also on the agenda.
