Workers in Odisha will get the lowest daily wages in the country, according to information available from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO). Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday ordered immediate publication of a notification hiking the minimum wages in the State.
According to the decision, unskilled labourers will get Rs 200, semi-skilled Rs 220, skilled Rs 240 and highly skilled Rs 260 as their daily wages. Currently, it is Rs 150 for unskilled labourers, Rs 170 for semi-skilled, Rs 190 for skilled and Rs 205 for highly skilled labourers. A press note issued by the CMO said after extensive deliberations on proposals received from various workers' unions and associations, the Government decided to implement these increases in the minimum wages.
However, the minimum wages are much lower in Odisha in comparison to wages in most other States. Barring Haryana and Rajasthan, minimum wages in all other States and the Union Territories have been fixed at rates higher than that of Odisha. While the minimum daily wages for the four categories of workers fixed in Odisha range from Rs 200 to Rs 260, they are Rs 274 to Rs 320 in Andaman, Rs 305 to Rs 347 in Chandigarh, Rs 268 to Rs 284 in Daman Diu, Rs 384 to Rs 423 in Delhi, Rs 286 to Rs 303 in Gujarat, Rs 245 to Rs 326 in West Bengal, Rs 239 to Rs 385 in MP, Rs 220 to Rs 380 in Mizoram, Rs 256 to Rs 360 in Punjab, Rs 220 to Rs 319 in Sikkim, Rs 259 to Rs 319 in UP and Rs 256 to Rs 444 in Telangana.
However, the wages range from Rs 228 to Rs 248 in Haryana and Rs 189 to Rs 259 in Rajasthan. While the minimum wage is Rs 222 in Chhattisgarh, it is Rs 209 in Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Rs 215 in Goa.
The minimum wage for highly skilled category of workers is Rs 284 in Assam, Rs 301 in Bihar, Rs 275 in Jharkhand, Rs 274 in Himachal Pradesh, Rs 275 in Jammu & Kashmir, Rs 365 in Tamil Nadu and Rs 290 in Tripura. Two adults and two children constitute a family as defined in the Minimum Wages Act. The minimum wages are determined taking into consideration food for them (2,700 calories for adults), 72 yards of clothes per annum for the family, house rent, fuel and lighting expenses and other needs.