Bhubaneswar: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has urged the Centre to take necessary steps for strict enforcement by the management of NALCO to ensure the payment of CACLB recommended wages to contract labourers engaged in the company’s coal mines in Odisha.
In separate letters to Union Coal and Mines Minister Prahlad Joshi and Labour and Employment Minister Bhupendra Yadav, Dharmendra sought their intervention in notifying the exemption and strong enforcement by NALCO by ensuring payment of CACLB recommended wages and benefits to contractual labour engaged in its coal mines by the contractor and MDO (Mine Developer and Operator) as per law.
Dharmendra, who hails from Odisha, said deployment of contract labour in jobs like raising or raising-cum-selling of cool, cool loading and unloading, overburden removal has been prohibited by Section-10 of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act 1970. However, Section 31 of the Act provides for exemption in special cases subject to prescribed conditions and restrictions. Industries engaged in coal mining in Angul district of Odisha have been taking exemptions under such provisions to employ contract labour, he said.
On May 29, 2019, NTPC has been waived off the applicability of Section-10 for the cool mining blocks for 5 years after due consideration by the Central Advisory Contract Labour Board (CACLB) subject to the payment of wages and other benefits as per recommendations of High-Powered Committee appointed by the Coal India Ltd, and other prescribed conditions, he said.
“NALCO, another industry major engaged in cool mining in Angul, has also applied for exemption under Section 31 of the Act to the Ministry of Labour and Employment through the Ministry of Mines. The CACLB has already conducted various meetings with representatives of NALCO and MDO engaged for Utkal D and E coal blocks. Its report has been submitted to the Ministry of Labour and Employment,” the Union Minister said.
Despite these guidelines, some contractors and MDOs are denying payment of High-Powered Committee recommended wages and benefits to their workers engaged in coal mines of NALCO, Dharmendra said.
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