Parl panel for sending money into workers' account during pandemic
New Delhi: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour has asked the government to explore ways and means to put in money in the bank accounts of the informal workers during adverse conditions like Covid-19. It also suggested making health insurance mandatory for all MGNREGA workers by amending the payment schedule.
The Parliamentary Committee, which is chaired by Lok Sabha MP Bhartruhari Mahtab, suggested the government to focus on creating new opportunities by upgrading the existing livelihoods and formalising the unorganised sector to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on unemployment and joblessness.
The Committee in its 25th report on 'Impact of Covid-19 on rising unemployment and loss of jobs/livelihoods in organised and unorganised sectors' recommended that fund allocation to ramp up health infrastructure should be increased and universal health care for all should be made a legal obligation of the government.
Slamming the government for non-maintenance of relevant data on the death of workers due to Covid-19, the Committee has urged the ministry to initiate urgent efforts to collate such technology-driven data to prudently facilitate and extend timely post-death benefits to the dependant and needy family members of the deceased workers.
However, the Committee further suggested the government to provide relief and protection to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged strata of the society by offering another round of income support to the poor to compensate for the loss of jobs incurred due to the implementation of two lockdowns as it would go a long way in mitigating their woes.
Expansion of social assistance and public welfare programmes is a short term mechanism to provide relief to vulnerable sections of the society in urban and rural areas, it observed.
The panel has further recommended conducting a performance assessment of the 32 states/UTs enrolled under the 'One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) to find out the number of beneficiaries of one state who have availed the facility in another state.
Highlighting the plight of street vendors, the panel has asked the Centre to explore the feasibility of converting the loan credit amount into a direct cash grant. The validity period of registration under Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojna (ABRY) be further extended beyond March 31, 2022, the report said.
