Natnl floor level minimum wages act soon: Kodikunnil Suresh

Minister of state for Labour and Employment Kodikkunil Suresh today said Parliament plans to soon enact a national floor level minimum wages act for uniformity in wages and also that the Provident Fund ceiling would be increased from Rs 6,500 to 15,000.
"Parliament proposes to enact the national floor level minimum wages act shortly for uniformity in wages in all states. Moreover the provident fund ceiling is being increased from Rs 6,500 to Rs 15,000," he said, speaking after the inauguration of an Employees State Insurance hospital here.
He said the Tamil Nadu government was paying Rs 800 crore as premium through ESI to the central government. The Centre is ready to give the premium sought for if government submitted a suitable proposal, he said.

The minister said the ESI hospital at Chennai would be converted to a post graduate medical institute and another four ESIC hospitals have been started in Tuticorin, Kanyakumari, Tirupur and Sriperumbudur.
He said ESIC has sanctioned 15 medical colleges throughout India, of which Tamil Nadu has two -- one in Chennai and the other in Coimbatore.
On ESIC hospitals in Tamil Nadu, he said the state government runs eight ESI hospitals and 196 dispensaries.
Primary medical care is provided by the state government, while the Centre provides the secondary and super-speciality treatment for ESI insured members.