Changes in labour laws

Recently, some states have made changes in the labour laws, rather suspended major laws that regulate minimum wages, work hours, holidays with pay, occupational safety and health, protection of migrant workers, right to form a union, etc. People are calling it labour reforms, which they are not. Reforms broadly mean to facilitate ease of doing business by increasing production, productivity and generating employment in such a way that the interest of the workers is not compromised. These changes are meant to benefit the industry by violating and ignoring the basic rights of workers. These changes will have dire consequences. There will be exponential increase in cases of accidents at workplace, incidents of workers falling sick, demoralisation and resentment against the system and the government. This blatant exploitation will take us back to the time when thousands of workers across the world had fought for social justice and higher living standards. These changes would lead to agitations, civil war and industrial unrest in the long run. It would also tarnish the image of our country. Labour reforms should be such which benefit and take care of both the pillars of the economy, industry and the workforce.

SS Lamba, District and Sessions Judge (Retd), Haryana

Audit to check misuse

With reference to the editorial ‘Mega stimulus package’ (May 14); it has to be seen how much in actual terms will be effective to help the falling economy, which is heading for a disaster. Auditing will be imperative to monitor where the funds will be utilised and in which sectors, and to ensure that it goes to the pockets of the poor and not greedy individuals. The details of this package must be made public to see its impact in the coming months.

Bhagwan Thadani, Mumbai

Woes of migrants

Reference to the editorial ‘The long walk home’ (May 14); if the authorities cannot fully take care of the problems of migrants, they can at least mitigate them. Any help or benefit announced by the government should reach the beneficiaries without delay and with minimum possible formalities. No doubt, it is difficult to handle such a mammoth class but help should reach the maximum number. There must be no gap between the announcements and ground realities. The police should be more humane towards the tired and distressed hapless workers.

Dilwar Ali Meerak

It is shameful

Reference to ‘The long walk home’ (May 14); those worst hit during the corona crisis are the migrant labour and lower classes. The government should tackle their problems on priority. One feels ashamed watching them walk on roads with small children and even pregnant women. Even after 72 years of independence, there is a huge gap between the upper and lower classes.

Sahildeep Kaur, Muktsar

Slum policies

Covid-19 has not only given a strong jolt to the socio-economic structure of the nation, but also revealed insensitivity in implementation of policies to get the ‘desired’ results, and today we are witnessing what has been brushed under the carpet for decades, ever since the onset of industrialisation and development in our country (‘Need to resolve housing for slum dwellers’, May 12). The focus should be on affordable housing, disproportionate growth of population, rate of development and employment opportunities in a local zone. Envisaging, framing and implementing policies without injecting sensitivity is an exercise in futility.

Sangeeta, Ludhiana

Teachers struggling, too

Everyday there is news about the struggle of labourers, MSME and other entities, but what about the teachers, who have not been getting their salaries since February. No one is interested in our sufferings! We are also labourers doing online teaching work, we are also the backbone of this society, we also need money to eat and pay EMIs, school fee, taxes, etc. But no one is thinking about us. What are we to do?

Satinder Verma, Ambala Cantt

A mother’s love

Apropos of the middle ‘Irreparable loss of a mother’ (May 13), I would like to pay my tribute to all mothers, and especially my mother who passed away recently. Mothers are a symbol of love and forgiveness. They are selfless and full of generosity. I quote an Urdu poem: Maut ke aagosh mein jab so jaati hain Maa, tab jake kahi thoda sa sukun paati hai Maa/ Bachchon aur pure pariwar ke fikar mein kuch aissi ghul jaati hai Maa, ki naujawan hote hue bhi budhi nazar aati hai Maa. We should always treat our mother with love and affection.

Ramesh G Jethwani, Bengaluru

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