Migrant Realities
Nimisha Priya’s time is running out. What her story tells us about fate of Indian migrant workers
Indian nurse Nimisha Priya of Kerala is to be executed in Yemen on July 16, 2025. Her case, shrouded in controversy and prosecuted by the de facto regime allegedly led by the Houthis, instead of the internationally recognised judicial system of Yemen, has brought the critical plight of Indian migrant labourers overseas into the open, particularly those who find themselves in legal black holes where due process is discretionary and consular protections mostly unavailable. Her story must become a catalyst for institutional change. India needs a comprehensive migrant worker protection regime
Bengal Migrants In Odisha: Bengal Chief Secretary Alleges "Harassment" Of Bengali Migrants In Odisha
VIDEO: West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant on Thursday wrote to his Odisha counterpart, urging him to put an end to "harassment" of Bengali-speaking migrant workers in certain parts of the neighbouring state. Manoj Pant, in the letter, said the migrant workers are "targeted because they speak Bengali, which is their mother tongue" and "unjustly labelled as Bangladeshis". The labourers include daily-wage earners, rickshaw-pullers and domestic workers.
The overlooked housing crisis of migrant workers
India’s economy is sustained by a vast, informal migrant workforce that circulates between villages and expanding urban and industrial clusters. This migrant workforce contributes to 10% of India’s GDP, working in the construction sector, manufacturing industries, domestic work, the hospitality sector, and street vending. Their numbers range between a 2018 estimate of 63 million ‘vulnerable circular migrant workers’ in urban areas, to a 2020 estimate of 250 million circular migrant workers, not including those who migrate for agricultural work. The Covid-19 lockdown made visible this vast mobile workforce and their precarity. Since then, the migrant workers have returned to cities. Where do they stay? How does the state view migrants and their basic needs? How can the city be reimagined to ensure that migrants have dignified housing?
Tiruppur Exporters Association seeks govt support for migrants' housing facility
Facing a labour shortage, the Tiruppur Exporters Association (TEA) is urging government support to establish housing for migrant workers, crucial for the knitwear export hub. Tiruppur, responsible for 68% of India's knitwear exports, eyes a 15% annual growth, targeting Rs 1 lakh crore exports by 2030, anticipating a 10% order increase with the India-UK FTA.
Women in the Workforce
Revamp anganwadi model for Viksit Bharat. Workers should be seen as frontline educators
With 26% of India’s 0–6 age population in urban areas, projected to reach 50% by 2047, redesigning ICDS to focus on and expand in urban areas is a national priority.
Maharashtra: 2,289 women govt employees received Ladki Bahin money while being ineligible
Mumbai: As many as 2,289 women government employees received a monthly assistance of Rs 1,500 under the `Ladki Bahin’ scheme even though they were ineligible, the Maharashtra government told the legislative assembly on Thursday. Their names were removed from the list of beneficiaries after this came to light during a scrutiny, Women and Child Development Minister Aditi Tatkare said in a written reply.
World Bank approves $150 million for Tamil Nadu Women Employment and Safety Programme
Under the Tamil Nadu Women Employment and Safety Programme, more than 6,00,000 women will receive skills training and career support, and 18,000 women entrepreneurs will receive incubation support to set up their businesses, says a World Bank statement. The World Bank support to the Tamil Nadu government has helped set up many safe hostels for women in the State. This operation will expand these enabling services to include creche facilities and elderly care as well as enhance options for safe transport and hotline call-centres for reporting cases of harassment and abuse against women.
Dying at Work
Before Telangana factory blast that killed 36, suspected malfunctions and red flags
A series of acute malfunctions that led to an unchecked rise in the heat and pressure in the working unit could be behind the fatal blast that killed 36 people at a Sigachi Industries factory near Hyderabad, a prima facie investigation suggests.
Labour Demands
Bharat Bandh: Chaos in Bengal, Kerala; Delhi, Mumbai unaffected
The nationwide strike on on July 9 disrupted banking, transport and other public sector services as thousands of workers joined the Bharat Bandh. It was called by 10 central trade unions across the country, to protest against the Centre's “anti-worker, anti-farmer, and anti-national pro-corporate policies." One of the key reasons behind the protest is the four new labour codes passed by Parliament. As per trade unions, these new codes undermine workers’ rights by making it more difficult to strike, increasing working hours, and shielding employers from penalties when they violate labour laws.
Bharat bandh: National strike assumes proportions of a bandh in Kerala
The 24-hour national strike called by public and private sector workers’ unions to protest against the “anti-labour” policies of the Central government assumed the proportions of a bandh in Kerala on July 9, 2025. The Joint Strike Committee activists prevented KSRTC from operating even skeletal services in Kerala. They also blocked interState bus services and freight movement, resulting in altercations with the police in different parts of the State. Hundreds of unionised bank employees walked off their jobs for the day, disrupting banking operations and commerce.
Over 25 crore workers joined the strike, claim trade unions
Leaders of central trade unions say key sectors such as power, mines, minerals, coal, ports and public transport were affected; they claim it was a bandh-like situation in Puducherry, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Kerala, West Bengal, Odisha, Karnataka, Goa, Meghalaya, Manipur
Research
India’s gig workforce expected to grow to nearly 62 million by 2047
India’s gig and platform workforce is expected to grow to nearly 62 million by 2047, constituting nearly 15% of the total non-agricultural workforce, reports the Business Standard, according to a new study by the labour ministry-affiliated think-tank VV Giri National Labour Institute (VVGNLI).
Gig and Platform Workers: Vision 2047
With an emphasis on job patterns, working conditions, algorithmic governance, disparities in gender and the socioeconomic effects of digital platforms, this study attempts to critically examine the changing gig work and its future scenario in employment dynamics. Using a mixed-method approach, it combines statistical methods, policy analysis and secondary research to offer evidence-based insights into the gig economy’s prospects and shortcomings. Special emphasis has been put on the experiences of women and youth, and the regulatory context that shapes their rights and safeguards.
Climate Change and Workers
AP’s Mango Farmers Battle Climate Change, Pests
Tirupati: An earlier onset of the summer, erratic rainfall, and pests that thrive due to the changing climate are impacting mango farmers’ yields in Rayalaseema in Andhra Pradesh, farmers say and data show.
EVs: From the Green to the Unseen
Moving towards EVs is necessary, but what happens to those employed in traditional automotive sector? Will jobs be created or lost?
Labour Reforms
When labour reform doesn’t translate to labour rights
Laws to protect workers must reflect the lived experiences of those who build our cities, grow our food, clean our homes, and power our platforms. Unless the missing majority is placed at the centre of policy, reform will remain so in name alone
Delhi govt directs Labour Dept to make changes to allow women to work in night shifts
The Delhi Government, under Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena and Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, is set to ease business regulations. Key changes include allowing women to work night shifts with consent, amending the Delhi Shops and Establishment Act to benefit businesses, and increasing the threshold for closures under the Industrial Dispute Act.
Gujarat amends factory law to allow night shifts for women, longer working hours
The Gujarat government has amended the Factories Act 1948 to allow women to work night shifts between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. with prescribed safety measures, while also increasing the maximum daily working hours from nine to twelve… The newly promulgated ordinance explicitly prohibits compulsory night shifts for women workers, requiring factories to secure written consent from any female employee opting for such duties.
Farm News
Maharashtra Admits 767 Deaths in 3 Months | Senior Jounalist P Sainath Exclusive with Rajdeep
The interview discusses the ongoing crisis of farmer suicides in Maharashtra, with the state government admitting to 767 such deaths in the Vidarbha region within the first three months of the year. P. Sainath, a senior journalist and Magsaysay award winner, provides insights into the issue. He emphasizes that farm suicides are the outcome, not the cause, of the agrarian crisis.
Elderly Farmer Couple's Plight Exposes Maharashtra's Agrarian Crisis
VIDEO: The report highlights the agrarian crisis in Maharashtra, focusing on a viral video of 75-year-old Ambadas Pawar and his wife Mukta Bai from Latur, who resorted to using themselves as oxen to plough their field. The state government has admitted that 767 farmers died by suicide in the first three months of 2025. The issue has become a political flashpoint, with the opposition demanding urgent discussion in the assembly. The report also mentions that Maharashtra saw 2,635 farmer suicides in the previous year and 2,851 in 2023.
Providing Jobs
Ahead of state polls, cabinet approves Rs 1 lakh crore scheme aimed at creating 3.5 crore jobs
NEW DELHI: The Cabinet Tuesday approved the Rs 1-lakh crore Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) scheme, aimed at generating more than 3.5 crore jobs in the organised sector. The decision comes ahead of assembly elections in Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Sinha promises jobs to eligible kin of all Kashmiri civilians killed by terrorists within 30 days
An eligible unemployed member of each "unacknowledged" Kashmiri household that lost someone to terrorist bullets over the past three decades will get a govt job within 30 days, J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha promised Sunday during an outreach in south Kashmir’s Anantnag involving over 80 such families.
Election Issues
Nitish’s big pre-poll announcement: Domicile rule to apply to 35% quota for women in govt jobs
This means that women who are not residents of Bihar will not be eligible for government jobs. In the past, the state government faced criticism for not applying the domicile policy during the mass recruitment of teachers.
9.13 lakh hired, close to fulfilling promise of giving 12 lakh jobs: Bihar government
With the Assembly election scheduled this year, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday (February 4, 2025) handed over recruitment letters to 6,837 newly appointed junior engineers and instructors. Last year on August 15, Mr. Kumar had promised to provide 12 lakh jobs out of which, the government said, 9.13 lakh jobs have been provided. There are plans to give 10 lakh more jobs.