Govt floats draft Coal Mines Employees Provident Fund Bill for discussion

The Coal Ministry's draft Bill seeks to replace the 1948 law, modernise the provident fund framework, and align miners' welfare schemes with new labour codes

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The Ministry of Coal on Wednesday proposed repealing the Coal Mines Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1948 and replacing it with a new law aimed at overhauling the social security framework for coal mine workers.

 

The ministry has invited comments and suggestions from stakeholders on the draft Coal Mines Employees Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill, 2025 by 7 November.

 

The move seeks to modernise and align the coal mining workforce’s provident fund and welfare schemes with current standards, taking into account recent labour code reforms, evolving working conditions, and social security requirements in the coal sector.

 

Key provisions in the draft Bill

 

The draft Bill proposes to legally institutionalise the Coal Mines Provident Fund Organisation (CMPFO) and bring parity with the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, as well as other social security laws.

 

It envisages the creation of a Coal Mines Employees Provident Fund Board, which will replace the existing Board of Trustees.

For the first time, the Bill introduces mandatory gender representation, requiring that at least one of the six employee representatives be a woman.

 

The penal provisions have been partially decriminalised, replacing imprisonment with monetary penalties in several instances.

 

It also introduces enhanced enforcement mechanisms for the recovery of dues, appointment of Adjudicating Officers to decide penalties, and an appeal process before the Central Industrial Tribunal.

 

New welfare and portability features

 

A new welfare corpus, titled the Protection of Coal Mines Employees Fund, is proposed to provide enhanced employee benefits.

 

The Bill further facilitates the transfer of provident fund accumulations across establishments, ensuring mobility of employees and continuity of benefits.