Migrant Realities
‘I had only Rs 100, a water bottle’: In Surat labour colony, memories of a long walk home 5 yrs ago
It was a walk like none other. On March 24, 2020, as the government announced a sudden lockdown — suspending all modes of transport and urging people to stay indoors — to check the spread of the rampaging Covid-19 virus, at labour hubs across the country, from Surat to Kolkata, Chennai to Gurgaon, migrant workers trudged hundreds of kilometres back to their homes in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Women in the Workforce
Underpaid and Unheard: The Struggle of Kerala's ASHA Workers
The ASHAs of Kerala receive a meagre honorarium though they play an indispensable role in the state’s healthcare. They are seen as 'volunteers' and the centre refuses to classify them as 'workers', but the state government has failed to meet their immediate demands for fair pay and social security.
Farm News
SKM: Farmer unions to protest against AAP govt’s police action on March 28
First time since the 2020-21 protest on the Delhi borders against the now-repealed three farm laws, farmer unions across forums, including the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), SKM (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM), will protest on March 28 the police action against farmers by the Punjab government outside Deputy Commissioners’ offices in all 23 districts of the state.
AAP's shifting stance: Why Punjab govt cracked down on farmers
Ahead of the Ludhiana West bypoll, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal were categorically told by industrialists, during a recent visit, that the farmers' agitation on highways was impacting the trade and economy. Sources claimed this was hugely responsible for the change in stance of the AAP government. Ludhiana's industry has wholeheartedly welcomed the Punjab government's push to shut down the agitation. MSME representative Badish Jindal told India Today that this action should have happened sooner. He emphasised that due to the border closure, Punjab's industries were incurring a loss of Rs 1,500 crore per month.
Endangered Workers
Unsafe India: Workers make a tally of accidents
SAFE in India (SII)’s sixth annual report, “CRUSHED 2024”, breaks new ground. For the first time, injured auto sector workers themselves carried out research for the report. Shramik Saathis or worker volunteers were trained in participatory research methods by SII and its partner, Praxis. They used tools like factory resource mapping, body mapping and daily schedule mapping for an entire year. Through community or factory meetings, group discussions and individual-level interactions, the workers collated their major findings on worker safety concerns, key causes of compromised workplace environments and made important recommendations to the government, factory owners and managements. Eight workers led over 100 workers in the survey. Their findings are brought together in an important chapter, “Hamaari Baat, Hum Bataayengey”, in SII’s report.
Layoffs and Hirings
Infosys lateral hiring: IT giant plans to recruit experienced tech workers across over 40 skill sets
Infosys is hiring experienced professionals across 40+ skill sets to fill various positions. The organisation requires candidates with a minimum of two years' work experience in specialised fields including cloud computing, cyber security, and Java Python.
Boosting Manufacturing
India set to ditch $23 billion plan to rival China factories after it disappoints
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has decided to let lapse a $23 billion program to incentivize domestic manufacturing, just four years after it launched the effort to woo firms away from China, according to four government officials…The hope was to raise the share of manufacturing in the economy to 25% by 2025…Some 750 companies, including Apple supplier Foxconn and Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries, signed up to the Production-Linked Initiative scheme, public records show. Firms were promised cash payouts if they met individual production targets and deadlines…As of October 2024, participating firms had produced $151.93 billion worth of goods under the program, or 37% of the target that Delhi had set, according to an undated analysis of the program compiled by the commerce ministry. India had issued just $1.73 billion in incentives — or under 8% of the allocated funds, the document said.
PIB: PLI scheme incentivizes domestic manufacturing, increases production, creates new jobs and boosts exports
PLI scheme clocks ₹1.61 lakh crores in investment,₹14 lakh crore in production, ₹5.31 lakh crore in exports and generates 11.5 lakh jobs. 764 applications approved across 14 sectors with 176 MSME beneficiaries. A press release issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry after the publication of the Reuters report said the impact of PLI Schemes has been significant across various sectors in India. They have also attracted significant investments from both domestic and foreign players. The government has said nothing about letting the programme lapse.
New PLI Schemes Shelved After Failure to Produce Satisfactory Results: Report
Before the Reuters report, in February this year, the Financial Express had reported that new production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes are unlikely to materialise, while the existing schemes are yet to produce satisfactory results.
Parliamentary panel urges Centre to extend PLI tenure, curb red tape
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce on Friday gave its recommendation for the government to extend the tenure and scope of the ongoing Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to more sectors and improve its effectiveness by reducing “administrative delays” and “compliance burdens”.
Domestic Workers
Domestic and gig workers condemn ‘maid-in-15-minutes’ offer by Urban Company
The domestic worker-for-hire service, introduced in select areas of Mumbai, provides app users with access to house help within 15 minutes for introductory prices as low as ₹49 per hour.