Three years down the line, rain shelter scheme remains confined to papers

Bandhkam Mazdoor Sangathan (BMS), a construction labour union has alleged that the above-mentioned rain shelter has remained largely unoccupied, as it had been set up without establishing the availability of migrant Adivasi labourers in the area. Vipul Pandya of BMS said, “To top it all, there is a fee of Rs five per person per day and the maximum limit of stay is eight days, whereas the labourers stay in the city for at least three to four months.”

Pandya added that with the demolition drive on one hand and no alternate arrangement on the other, the situation for construction workers in the city is turning precarious by the day.

It may be mentioned that under the provisions of Section 3 of the Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996, the state government collects cess at the rate of 1 per cent of the cost of construction incurred by an employer. Under the provisions of Section 22 (1) (f) of the Act, the Gujarat Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Board is required to utilise this fund for the welfare of labourers engaged in construction activities. Till October 2008, the total fund collected under the scheme has crossed Rs 106 crore.

“Where and how this fund is being used remains a mystery,” said Pandya.

Shahmina Hussain, Commissioner (Tribal Development), Gujarat government, was unavailable for comments.