A meeting of Department Related Standing Committee (DRSC-II) of J&K Legislative Council was held here today under the Chairmanship of MLC, Naresh Kumar Gupta.The meeting reviewed the overall functioning of Labour & Employment, Industries and Commerce Departments.Legislators, Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo, Mohammad Muzaffar Parray, Firdous Ahmad Tak, Khursheed Ahmed Ganai, Sham Lal Bhagat, S Charanjeet Singh and Pardeep Kumar Sharma attended the meeting.The Committee reviewed the registration of un-employed youth in the state and steps taken by the labour and employment department in this regard.The Commissioner Secretary, Labour and Employment, Kifayat Hussain Rizvi informed the Committee that registration of un-employed youth of the state is not mandatory, but voluntarily.The Committee also sought the present status of Sher-i-Kashmir Unemployment Welfare Scheme. The issues of holding camps, seminars and orientation programmes for job awareness purposes at District levels were also discussed in the meeting.The Committee asked the department to intimate the local legislators before holding such programmes.The issue of labour wages and commission charged by Mates was also discussed, while the committee desired that the Labour and Employment Department should issue rate calendar to save the labourers from exploitation.
The committee further reviewed the compensation given in case of death of labourers, amount provided under marriage assistance and other schemes to the registered labourers. The Committee called upon the authorities to go to cut off areas and issue on the spot registration certificates to local labourers enabling them to reap the benefits of the state and centrally sponsored schemes meant for them.The Chief Executive Officer of Labour and Employment, B A Khan apprised the committee about the scope of newly launched public, poor friendly scheme (MUHAFIZ) which provides for insurance coverage of Rs 2 lakh to registered workers in case of natural death, Rs 4 lakh in case of accidental death, besides Rs 1.00 in case of permanent disability.Later, in a separate meeting, the Committee reviewed the overall functioning of Industries and Commerce Department.The Committee discussed the budget allocation, expenditure incurred, tax exemption under various schemes, subsidies and allied benefits provided by the government during last three years.The Committee discussed that the present status of established and proposed industrial Estates and the facilities provided and employment generated by the department.Principal Secretary, Industries and Commerce, Shailendra Kumar briefed the Committee about the overall functioning of the department and the steps taken by it to provide employment to the educated youth of the state through the activities of the department.Also present in the meeting were Labour Commissioner, Dr Abdul Rashid, MD, JKI, Javid Iqbal, MD SICOP, R L Tickoo, MD, JK Cements, Atul Sharma, MD SIDCO, Jasvinder Singh Dua, MD Handloom, Rakesh Sharma, MD JKHL, Abid Suhail, Additional Secretary, I&C, Nagender Singh Jamwal, Director Industries and Commerce, Kashmir and Jammu, besides other senior officers of concerned department and Council Secretariat were also present in the meeting.