One-month lockdown: Punjab govt yet to collect affected daily wagers, labourers data for aid disbursement

LAHORE: One month has passed since the lockdown started in Punjab by the government but it was unable to collect the data of affected daily wagers and labourers to provide living support to them.

Four meetings of task force for providing financial assistance to the affected people of the lockdown were so far held. However, till Wednesday when the fourth meeting was held the government was still without data of the affected daily wagers and labourers. In every meeting the minister asked the department concerned to provide data of affected daily wagers. The three different departments; industry, labour and Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) are collecting the data. However, 100 percent authentic data could not be collected as the unregistered labourers were also working in the formal sector (industrial) sector in the province.

According to different industries, on average, 30 to 50 percent of formal sector labourers is undeclared by the industrial sector in Punjab. The undeclared labourers are mainly daily wagers or short contract labourers. The industries did not declare them to avoid the social security, Employees Old Age Benefit Institution (EOBI) and other compulsory financial contribution to the government for the labourers welfare. Thus, these daily wagers did not fall in any category. Punjab Industries Secretary Zafar Iqbal while talking to The News admitted that the data was being collected for disbursement of financial support to the daily wagers as announced by Prime Minister Imran Khan. He said the government’s daily wagers were getting their salaries while issue of industrial and informal sector daily wagers is complex. He said the labour department was gathering the data while the industry department already shared the information with the people concerned. About the financial package, Zafar said data was being gathered and hoped that financial disbarment would be made before Ramazan. Further, the details of the labourers data are with the labour department and only they can answer and tell the status of daily wagers of industrial sector, he added.

Labour Secretary Amir Jan talking to The News said industrial workers data was furnished to the PDMA while the daily wagers data was not available. The PDMA is collecting this data. To a question about the status of undeclared industrial daily wagers, he said action would be taken against the industries if the daily wagers and labourers registered their complaints.

Contrary to secretary industry and labour, Director General Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Raja Khuram Shahzad confirmed that no one has the daily wagers data in the province. “We get 15 million applications, gather the data and hand over to Punjab Information Technology Board, which is filtering the data,” he said, adding that after applying eight different excluding filters similar to BISP data, final data would be ready by next week. After this exercise, the Punjab government will be able to begin the disbursement of financial aid to daily wagers affected due to lockdown.

Khuram Shahzad admitted that the data would not be 100 percent accurate. However, he believed that it would be around 80 to 85 percent correct. The government has to rely on this data for financial aid disbursement in the absence of any reliable data with any of the provincial departments.

Unfortunately, the daily wagers working in the formal sector also fall in the informal sector due to non-existence of proper labourers’ data. The home-based workers who are deprived of work also fall in the same category.

Meanwhile, Punjab Industries and Trade Minister Mian Aslam Iqbal chaired Task Force fourth meeting for providing financial assistance to the daily wagers in which progress relating to data collection about affected labourers and daily wagers owing to lockdown was reviewed. The provincial minister for labour Ansar Majeed Khan, Secretary Industries and Trade Zafar Iqbal and Task Force members attended the meeting.

Aslam Iqbal maintained that registration process of labourers becoming unemployed and daily wagers was under way. Data of labourers and daily wagers from formal and informal sector is also being accumulated. After completion of aforesaid assignment in coming few days, its comprehensive report will be submitted to the chief minister.

Aslam Iqbal assured that labourers and daily wagers unemployed due to lockdown will be provided financial assistance. The government is standing by the distressed masses in this hour of affliction and is also fully aware of the agonies and problems of unemployed segment of society.

He emphasised that the labourer and daily wager segment will also be benefited with the opening of construction sector and by granting fiscal relief package. The weak and downtrodden segment is also being provided fiscal aid through Ehsaas Khifalat Programme, he added.