Punjab to amend inter-state migrant rules to avail 2 pc additional borrowings

Chandigarh, November 18

The Punjab cabinet on Wednesday approved amending the Inter-State Migrant Workers rules, which will pave the way for availing additional borrowing of 2 per cent of the GSDP.

In a virtual meeting chaired by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, the cabinet decided to insert Rule 53A in the Inter-State Migrant Workers (Regulation of Employment and Condition of Service) Punjab Rules, 1983, to allow maintaining different prescribed registers in electronic/digital format to reduce the compliance burden of the industries.

This investor-friendly initiative would encourage the digitalisation of records, besides helping to maintain transparency and easy access to records, thereby not only complying with the requirements of the Government of India but also attracting huge investments through ensuring a conducive environment in the state, an official statement said.

The Centre, in instructions issued in May this year, had imposed certain conditions for obtaining additional 2 per cent borrowing of the gross state domestic product (GSDP).

One of the conditions was to have automatic renewals under labour laws.

At present, there is no provision of auto renewal of license under the Inter-State Migrant Workers (Regulation of Employment and Condition of Service) Punjab Rules, 1983.

Hence, there was need to amend the aforementioned rules to facilitate the industries with provision of auto renewal, the cabinet felt.

In another decision, the cabinet approved a set of new guidelines under a single-window policy to replace the existing norms.

The aim is to create robust telecommunication infrastructure with adequate bandwidth for promoting information technology, e-governance and e-commerce in the state, the statement said.

The new guidelines will supersede the telecom policy notified in 2013, an official spokesperson said after the meeting, adding that the amended policy was aligned to the Right of Way Rules, 2016.               This decision would enable speedier permissions for installation of telecom towers, masts, poles and right of way (RoW) clearances for laying of optical fibre cables to registered telecom operators/infrastructure providers at government or private buildings and lands. Enhanced period for validity of permissions and elimination of no-objection certificate (NOC) requirement from Punjab Pollution Control Board for installation of generator sets are among the key highlights of the new policy.

The spokesperson said the existing fee structure would be rationalised by replacing various charges currently being collected by the state with a one-time administrative fee of Rs 10,000 per tower.

The single-window policy envisages providing online clearances through the Punjab Business First Portal in a time-bound fashion, with the provision of deemed clearances built into the new guidelines.           

To empower Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), the cabinet approved a new scheme—Punjab Divyangjan Shaktikaran Yojna (PDSY), to be implemented in a phased manner across the state.

The first phase of the scheme will involve strengthening the existing programmes to ensure that their benefits reach persons with disabilities in a more effective manner.

In the second phase, 13 new interventions are proposed to be undertaken for the empowerment of such persons.

As per Census 2011, out of Punjab’s population of 2.72 crore, 6.5 lakh are differently-abled persons.

In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the cabinet also decided to defer implementation of the Punjab State Council for Agricultural Education Act, 2017, till June 30, 2021.

The main objective of this Act is to specify the minimum standards and guidelines for imparting agricultural education and training to be followed by the colleges/universities in the state. It was notified in January 2018.

To cope more effectively with the COVID-19 pandemic, the cabinet gave approval for the creation of 16 posts of Assistant Professor in the departments of cardiology, endocrinology, neurology and nephrology of government medical colleges of Patiala and Amritsar. — PTI