Vasundhara Raje submits labour reforms proposals to Centre

Chief minister conveyes to Union Labour Minister Narendra Singh Tomar that developing skills is key issue in her state

Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje knocked at the doors of the Union labour, steel and mining minister Narendra Singh Tomar here on Thursday with labour reform proposals in her states in hand.

In her first meeting with the Tomar, Raje proposed a slew of labour amendments related to the Factories Act, 1948; Contract Labour Act, 1970; Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 and Apprenticeship Act, 1961.
These laws fall under the concurrent list.

“The minister has received the proposals and will consider them after reviewing them in detail,” said a senior ministry official.

Raje said she conveyed to the Union minister that developing skills is the key issue in her state. “Skill development in the labour force is the main issue for us right now,” she said.

Labour reforms were only one aspect of the comprehensive discussion held with the Union minister. “We discussed various issues, including skill development, steel, labour, etc. We are looking forward to more such talks,” Raje told Business Standard after an hour-long meeting.

Raje termed this as a preliminary discussion and added that she has invited Tomar to visit Rajasthan to talk in detail about these issues.

Raje said her state looks to create additional jobs. “There was a lot of discussion around skill development. This is important to enhance employability in Rajasthan,” said Raje. “There is a need to create 1.5 million jobs for the youth in our state and need to take steps in that direction but nothing is possible without developing skills.”

To attract investments and help the sector get skilled workers, the Rajasthan government recently proposed plenty of labour reforms. Some of the proposals include the state not requiring the Centre's permission to retrench up to 300 employees, compared with 100 at present; applicability of the Contract Labour Act to companies with more than 50 workers, against the current 20. These proposed amendments will be tabled in the Rajasthan Assembly in two weeks and subsequently require the President’s assent.