The Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare
Cess Act, 1996, provides levy and collection of cess at such rate not exceeding
two per cent but not less than one per cent of the cost of construction as the
Central Government may notify. The cess has been levied and being collected at
the rate of 1% of the cost of construction as notified by the Central
Government in the Official Gazette.
The
cumulative total of the amount of cess collected by the States/ UTs upto
20.12.2016, at the rate of 1% of the cost of construction is Rs. 31694 crore of
which Rs. 6866 crore has been spent.
Universal
Account Number (UAN) allotted to construction workers is over 50 lakhs as on
17.01.2017.
The
Government has enacted the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation
of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 and the Building and other
Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996 to regulate the employment and
conditions of service of building and other construction workers and to provide
for their safety, health and welfare measures.
The
State Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Boards of the respective
states have formulated welfare schemes to provide benefits to building and
other construction workers as mandated under Section 22 of the Act. Section 22
of the Act stipulates following benefits:
(a)
provide
immediate assistance to a beneficiary in case of accident;
(b)
make
payment of pension to the beneficiaries who have completed the age of sixty
years;
(c)
sanction
loans and advances to a beneficiary for construction of a house not exceeding
such amount and on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed;
(d)
pay
such amount in connection with premia for Group Insurance Scheme of the
beneficiaries as it may deem fit;
(e)
give
such financial assistance for the education of children of the beneficiaries as
may be prescribed;
(f)
meet
such medical expenses for treatment of major ailments of a beneficiary or, such
dependent, as may be prescribed;
(g)
make
payment of maternity benefit to the female beneficiaries; and
(h)
make
provisions and improvement of such other welfare measures and facilities as may
be prescribed.
This information was given by Shri
Bandaru Dattatreya,
the Minister of State (IC) for Labour and Employment, in reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
*****
BCK/AK
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