Read Time: 07 minutes

Supreme Court in its order dated 24.05.2021, directed to ensure timely registration of unorganized workers, supply of dry rations, resuming of community kitchens and setting up of suitable mechanism to ensure benefit of Government Schemes are actually reaching the beneficiaries.

A Division Bench of Justice Ashok Bhushan and Justice MR Shah, while directing to provide Migrant Workers, wherever stranded throughout the country, with dry ration under the Atma Nirbhar Scheme/any other scheme as suitable, said,

“… registration of unorganized Workers should be completed as early as possible and there should be Common National Database for all organised workers situate in different States in the entire country and we are of the view that process which has been initiated by Ministry of Labour and Employment for creating a National Database for unorganised workers should be completed with collaboration and coordination of the States, which may serve registration for extending different schemes by the States and Centre.”

During the course of hearing, the bench made the following oral remarks;

Justice Bhushan: There is no difficulty with respect to Schemes, but who will monitor it? There needs to be supervision. Some authority to see whether the benefit is reaching the needy.

Justice Bhushan: There should be a National Data Grid, accessible from any place throughout. Details of unorganized sector in all States should be included and this is carried out by Ministry of Labour…This should be completed in a time bound manner

Bench: Whether those who do not have ration cards, how you are planning to give them rations?

Court also noted that all States have framed rules and some have also undertaken registration under the concerned Acts but no State has given any details as to whether registration under the Unorganised Workers Social Security Act, 2008 is complete.

With respect to community kitchen, Court said, “it is the responsibility of the States/Union Territories to provide Community Kitchen to the stranded migrant workers, who have lost their employment and are in need of two meals a day. We direct all the States/Union Territories to make operational the community kitchen to the stranded migrant workers wherever they may situate in the country. There shall be wide publicity with respect to the various schemes including the places of community kitchens so that such needy persons may in fact take benefits.”

With respect to cash transfer, the bench observed, “Cash transfer is a matter of policy and scheme framed by each State/Union Territory and no direction for cash transfer can be issued by this Court to any category of person unless they are covered by any scheme formulated by the State/Union Territory. In the affidavits, which are to be filed by the States/Union Territories, details of the schemes regarding cash transfer be also brought on record.”

Representations were made by learned SGI Mr Mehta and ASG Ms Bhati for the Union, Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves and Advocate Prashant Bhushan for the Petitioner, Senior Advocate Ranjit Kumar for the State of Bihar, AAG for UP Ms. Garima Prashad, AOR Mohit Paul for NHRC, Advocate Rahul Chitnis for State of Maharashtra, AG for State of Odisha Ashok Parijia, AAG for Jharkhand Tapesh Kumar Singh and Senior Advocate Maninder Singh.

Case Title: In Re: Problems and Miseries of Migrant Labourers | Suo Moto Writ Petition (C) No. 6 of 2020