Karnataka Labour Minister moots residential schools for children of labourers

Hassan: Labour Minister Santhosh Lad mooted residential schools for the children of labourers, in Hassan on Monday.

Speaking to mediapersons here on Monday, Lad said, “The schools would be on the lines of the Morarji Desai Residential Schools and a decision has been taken in this regard, by the Labour department, to provide good quality education to the children of the labourers.”

“There is proposal to open cooperative societies in each district, to make proper payment to the employees on contract. For every 500 employees, one society will be registered. The Deputy Commissioners of all districts have been given directions in this regard and the societies would be established in phases,” Lad said.

Labour card

Lad said, in view of benefiting deserving labourers, fake cards have been weeded out. “From 2007 to 2025, there has been a drastic increase in the number of building construction workers. However, when I took charge as labour minister, there were 54 lakh labour cards. It was found that 20 lakh of them were fake. Now, the number of the cards has come down to 34 lakh,” he said.

Politics

In response to a question on the change in Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Lad said, “Issues like change in CM, or if a Dalit should become the CM, will be decided by the Congress high command. We are all bound by the decisions of the party high command.”

Responding to a statement of Opposition Leader R Ashoka that CM Siddaramaiah will resign on November 15, Lad said, “Let the BJP first change its Prime Minister from Narendra Modi to somebody like Nitin Gadkari, to save the nation.”