Minister of State for Finance & Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur held Pre-Budget Consultation with the representatives of various Trade Unions and Labour Organisations here on Saturday in connection with the forthcoming General Budget 2019-20.
During the course of meeting, representatives of Trade Unions and Labour Organisations shared their views and suggestions regarding labour and employment issues.
Discussions were held on providing social security to labour besides skilling, re-skilling and up-skilling of existing labour force. Quality of job creation and ensuring minimum wages of workers were also discussed in detail besides the issue of rehabilitation of workers who have lost their jobs.
Along with Mr Thakur, the meeting was attended by Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey, Expenditure Secretary Girish Chandra Murmu and CBDT chairman Pramod Chandra Mody among others.
Experts and representatives from various Trade Unions and Labour Organisations gave suggestions related to alignment of skill development with aspirations of rural youth with focus on agriculture; need for strict enforcement of Minimum Wages Act; introduction of comprehensive unemployment insurance scheme; revision of ITIs’ syllabus for enhancing employability; provision of social security for contract workers; giving boost to capital intensive industry; conversion of casual or contractual workers to formalised employment and fixation of minimum wages on the recommendation of 15th Indian Labour Conference.
Suggestions were also discussed on increase in allocations on social sector and basic essential services like health, education and food security; stopping disinvestment and strategic sale of public sector units; extension of MGNREGA to remaining all rural areas and introducing it in urban areas besides increasing number of workdays under the scheme to 200 days and creation of National Fund for Unorganised Workers to provide social security among others.
Earlier, Mr Thakur held pre-budget Consultation Meeting with the representatives of Digital Economy and Start-ups.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday held Pre-Budget Consultation Meeting with the leading Economists and stakeholders from Social Sector Groups.
Ms Sitharaman held Consultation Meeting with the stakeholders from Financial Sector and Capital Markets here on Thursday and the main areas of discussion included issues relating to the Capital Markets, Financial Sector, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) on Wednesday.
She held meetings with the stakeholder groups from Industry, Trade and Services Sectors and also the Agriculture and Rural Development Sectors on Tuesday.
