The Odisha Legislative Assembly on Tuesday approved an expenditure proposal of ₹385.03 crore for the Labour and Employees’ State Insurance Department for the financial year 2026-27.
Replying to the debate in the House, Labour Minister Ganesh Ram Singkhuntia outlined several initiatives aimed at strengthening labour administration and safeguarding the interests of migrant workers.
The Minister stated that steps are being taken to fill all vacant positions of Assistant Labour Officers at the block level to make these offices fully functional.
To ensure the protection and welfare of inter-state migrant workers, the government is effectively implementing the Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979, alongside the State Action Plan.
A comprehensive family-based survey of migrant workers has been successfully completed in 30 blocks across 9 migrant-prone districts in collaboration with the National Law University, Odisha.
In 2025, as per the provisions of the Act, licences were issued to 1,465 contractors for the employment of 92,176 migrant workers. Sixteen legal cases have been registered against contractors found violating the law.
The government will establish Migrant Workers Assistance Cells in four districts. A budgetary provision of ₹9.60 lakh has been allocated for this purpose.
Odisha has already set up Migrant Workers Assistance Centres in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Surat. These will be expanded to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka during 2026-27.
Immediate rescue operations are initiated upon receipt of any distress complaints regarding Odia migrant workers in other states. The state is also taking steps to sign MoUs with the governments of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu, in collaboration with Odia communities, for providing necessary support.
Under the Odisha Unorganised Workers Social Security Board, 34,731 workers were registered during the 2025-26 financial year, and financial assistance of ₹9.58 crore was distributed. Till February 28, a total of 440,962 workers have been registered, with ₹32.90 crore in benefits disbursed.
