Will effectively enforce labour laws in sugar belt: State to HC
MUMBAI: The state government on Monday informed the Bombay high court that it will take effective steps to enforce labour laws and in particular the Contract Labour Act for migrant sugarcane farm labourers.
The state’s averments were made on an affidavit it filed in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) which the HC had suo mot (on its own) filed after taking note of a newspaper article on the alleged financial and sexual harassment of the Maharashtra’s migrant workforce in the sugar belt.
The state said to address sexual harassment cases, the women and child development and home departments will coordinate with each other to take steps for awareness and preventive action.
The state represented by its advocate general Biren Saraf and government pleader P P Kakade submitted the affidavit filed by S M Kanade, deputy commissioner of labour, before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Arif Doctor.
Sara said the state enumerated the steps taken for the welfare of the migrant sugarcane cutters and also the further steps proposed for the ensuing season. The affidavit contained information compiled from various departments and the HC suggested the state must form a nodal agency so that it can henceforth make submissions to the court through it for ease of proceedings.
The state said sugarcane factories are registered under the Factories Act and regulated by the directorate of industrial health and safety under the control of the labour department. The sugar industry, seasonal in nature, commences in October for 5 to 7 months and any complaints received are to be addressed by the labour department.
Basic wages and dearness allowance are both included under ‘minimum wages in the agriculture sector and are applicable to sugarcane cutters. It is mandatory for the contractor to pay minimum wages to these workers. The state said it would “ensure implementation of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act of 1970 and ensure provision of welfare under the Act even to contract labourers who have come from other states”. For inter-state migrant workers there is also an Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, which will be looked at, the state said.
An action plan formulated for the upcoming sugarcane season by the labour department stipulates monitoring of welfare practices by the divisional officer of the labour commissioner’s office.
There are close to eight lakh sugarcane works who migrate from various districts of Marathwada and Vidarbha to over 200 different factories during the season.
