On Tuesday, the Delhi High Court directed the central and the Delhi Governments to give data on migrant workers available with them as of June 1 and detail the procedures being followed for contractors or employers to register such workers.
The court said the first significant measure would be collection of the actual data and its integration between the Centre and the state governments.
Justice Pratibha M Singh directed the Ministry of Labour, Union of India and the Delhi government to file affidavits detailing the number of establishments currently registered under the Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979.
The court was hearing a plea that had sought implementation of this Act.
The petitioner, Shashank S Mangal, had sought framing of rules for migrant workers under the Act for its operation in the national capital.
In its interim order, the court sought the number of licences issued to contractors, number of inter-state migrant workers who registered under the Act, action taken against ‘contractors’ and ‘employers’ for contravention of provisions of the Act since 2010. The court asked for the total number of “officers” appointed under provisions of the Act.
The court said, “The recent crisis which the country has witnessed with respect to migrant workmen shows that for the effective enforcement and implementation of the Act, there is an immediate need for proper data to be always available so as to ensure that steps can be taken in a timely and adequate manner, especially in times of a pandemic such as Covid-19 or in any other form of emergent situation”.
It said the collection of data should be vertically integrated so that data relating to migrant workmen, from the Centre and the states is collected, cross-checked, maintained and is readily available, without any time lag. In order for any measures to be taken for migrant workmen, such data is of prime importance,” it added.
Appearing for the Delhi government, its standing counsel Ramesh Singh, told the court that the registering officers, licensing officers,appellate officers and inspectors had been appointed by the Delhi government. He said the Rules under this Act had been notified.
The Central Government standing counsel, Kirtiman Singh, sought time from the court to produce information on the appointment of these officials.
The court, while passing the order, said “prima facie”, in order to have a proper, streamlined regulation of migrant workmen and their conditions of service, the first and the foremost significant measure would be the collection of actual data and its integration between the central and the state governments.
The matter would be now heard on June 29.
The judgement has been delivered by Justice Pratibha M Singh on 02-06-2020.
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