The Jharkhand Government has accused the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) of having no respect for life and dignity of migrant workers whom BRO engaged in its projects in tough terrains across the country.
In a strongly worded letter sent to director general of BRO Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhary on July 16; the principal secretary of Labour, Employment, Training and Skill Development Pravin Kumar Toppo alleged that BRO has failed to comply with mutually agreed terms for employing labourers from Jharkhand.
The Hemant Soren led government, which is quite concerned about the migrant labourers has asked the BRO to share details of the number of labourers hired from Jharkhand along with their monthly fixed wages and the number of labourers who have lost their lives on duty.
What particularly worries the chief minister is the media reports telling horrific stories of precarious living and working conditions of migrant workers who are working on the BRO projects in the tough terrains like Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. A good number of labourers have died due to natural calamities while on the duty. For instance 11 labourers died in Uttarakhand in an avalanche storm in April this year. During the nationwide lockdown labourers alleged that they were left in lurch by BRO and labourers were evacuated by the state government.
Jharkhand government has demanded a precise detail of the number of migrant labourers working at the BRO as casual paid labourers as the BRO refers to a vague data that shows thousands of migrant workers working as casual paid labourers (CPLs) with BRO since March 2021. Besides, the government has also sought details of labourers who had died between March 2020 and June 30 2021 due to COVID-19 pandemic whether or not they were given compensation.
The Labour secretary reminded BRO that last year BRO and state government had mutually agreed upon terms and conditions of engagement of CLP labourers from Jharkhand. Toppo expressed displeasure that BRO is not honouring the agreement. Labourers are inadequately paid, they live in poor conditions and they are hired by middlemen.
As per the agreement signed on June 13, 2020 for the engagement of paid labourers from 2021-22 onwards, it was decided that BRO will apply for registration in Jharkhand as an establishment. BRO had agreed to follow provisions of Jharkhand’s Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act-1979 for inducting 11815 workers as CLP. The Jharkhand government pointed out that migrant workers from Dumka are hired for BRO projects through middlemen which is a violation of the mutually agreed terms.
The government has inquired as to when BRO intends to apply before Jharkhand government as an employing establishment under Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act 1979/Occupational Safety Health and Working Conditions Code- 2020 and when BRO plans to share drafts of the MoU for discussion with Jharkhand.