SC trashes contributory pension scheme for construction worker

The Supreme Court today rejected the Centre's plea that it would seek 50 per cent contribution from construction workers for according them the benefit of pension scheme, saying such a move will keep them away.
"Don't make the beneficiaries (of the pension scheme) to contribute to the scheme. The moment you do it, they are dissuaded to keep away from the scheme," the social justice bench comprising justices Madan B Lokur and U U Lalit said.
"Our idea is that a worker is not made to contribute to the pension scheme. That (government's move) is the easiest way to dissuade the worker to keep away from the scheme", it said.

The court, on September 4, had expressed dissatisfaction over government's reply on the proposed use of a whopping Rs 21,000 crore meant for welfare of construction workers and had summoned the Labour Secretary to appear in person today.
The proposal to award contributory scheme to workers under the Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Cess Act, 1996 was mooted today by the Centre, which also admitted that nothing substantial has been done in the past.
Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh, appearing for the Centre, admitted that there was a "complete failure" on the part of the government in utilising the fund collected for the welfare of the construction workers as mandated under the 1996 law and said somewhere a "beginning" has to be made.

Labour Secretary Shankar Aggarwal, who appeared on court summon, told the bench that one of the impediments in the implementation of the provision of the 1996 law was that construction workers did not have an identity card.

He said this problem being tackled by issuing them portable Universal Access Number (UAN) that will have their bank account number where all benefits would get channelized. He also said that the issuance of UAN would be competed in the current financial year.
The court then asked the Secretary to file an affidavit on the issue.
The court asked the Labour Secretary to address the suggestions given by amicus curiae Vivek Tankha for proper utilisation of over Rs 21,000 crore.