Odisha Labour Minister Orders Monthly Reviews to Boost Welfare Delivery and Enforcement
Bhubaneswar: Odisha Labour Minister Ganesh Ram Singkhuntia has directed officials of the Labour Department to conduct regular monthly reviews and intensify field-level monitoring to improve the implementation of welfare schemes and labour law enforcement across the state.
The directions were issued during a state-level review meeting held at Lok Seva Bhavan, where the Minister assessed the progress of key departmental initiatives, including child labour eradication, prevention of distress migration, construction workers’ welfare, labour infrastructure projects, and service delivery mechanisms.
To ensure greater accountability, a structured review mechanism has been introduced.
Under the new system, Joint Labour Commissioners (JLCs) will review the performance of Deputy Labour Commissioners (DLCs) and District Labour Officers (DLOs) on the 7th of every month.
DLCs will review DLOs on the 4th of each month, while DLOs will evaluate Assistant Labour Officers and Labour Inspectors on the 2nd and 17th.
The Minister emphasised the need for timely reporting, regular supervision, and effective implementation of welfare programmes at the grassroots level.
He instructed officers to strengthen district-level monitoring and ensure that eligible beneficiaries receive the benefits provided under various labour welfare schemes.
A significant focus of the meeting was the ongoing special campaign against child labour, being conducted from October 2 to November 14.
The initiative aligns with the state government’s vision of making all Gram Panchayats in Odisha child labour-free by 2029.
Discussions also covered measures to prevent distress migration, accelerate the construction of Labour Department offices, enhance the utilisation of the PAReSHRAM Portal, ensure effective implementation of the Odisha Right to Public Services (ORTPS) Act, strengthen grievance redressal systems, and improve the functioning of labour welfare boards.
The Minister further called for increased inspections at worksites to prevent irregularities and ensure transparency in the registration and welfare benefit distribution process for construction workers.
The review meeting was attended by senior officials, including Dodda Venkat Swamy, Principal Secretary of the Labour and Employees’ State Insurance Department, and Indramani Tripathy, Labour Commissioner, along with other departmental officers.
