JOIN US The Karnataka government will urge the Centre to bring down the age limit of labourers availing pension benefits, said Labour Minister P T Parameshwar Naik on Friday.
Currently, it has been decided by the Centre to disburse a pension amount of Rs 1,000 to those labourers registered with the Karnataka Labour Welfare Board, after they turn 60. However, the state government wants to bring down the age limit from 60 years to 55 years for men and 50 years for women, for availing monthly pension, Naik added.
Addressing the media, he also said that a ‘Kalyana Suraksha Bhavan’ is being built at a cost of Rs 14 crore at Dairy Circle in the City, by the Labour Welfare Board. Also, in order to improve the skills of the construction labourers, Sir M Visvesvaraya National Construction Academy will be set up at Obadenahalli in Doddaballapur on 20 acres.
The Academy is being built at a cost of Rs 364 crore. The amount will be raised from the labour cess collected by the Board. Earlier, the works of the Academy was entrusted to a German firm at Rs 250 crore. The project amount has now been revised to Rs 365 crore, he said. Preparation of a detailed project report, tender process and overseeing of the project has been handed over Hindustan Steel Works Construction Corporation Ltd.
Garment workers protest
The minister said that during the recent protest staged by garment workers, the role of anti-social elements behind the damage to public property could not be ruled out.
He said that a team led by Assistant Labour Commissioner Sripad was looking into the issue. If cases have been filed against innocent workers or labourers, they will be dropped based on the investigation report, he added.