The Cabinet today cleared a simplified version of a labour Bill that will benefit small business establishments employing up to 40 workers in maintaining registers and submitting returns electronically.
According to the decision, the Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Amendment and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill, 2005, will be replaced with Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Amendment Bill, 2010, in the coming session of Parliament.
In order to make it easier for very small establishments employing up to nine workers and small establishments employing between 10 and 19 workers, the government had earlier allowed them to maintain just one and three registers, respectively.
They were allowed to file one return each.
But now these organisations will be required to maintain two registers.
Registers/records can be maintained in computer, floppy, diskette or on other electronic media and return submitted through e-mail.
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The Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Amendment and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill, 2005 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha to expand the coverage of the Act. Following discussions in the Standing Committee, procedures have been simplified and a new bill has been cleared by the Cabinet after permitting the labour ministry to withdraw the old one.
| OTHER DECISIONS # The government approved the introduction of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill, which is aimed at improving the accountability of cooperatives, in Parliament. # A revival plan for the National Film Development Corporation with fresh infusion of Rs 3 crore was approved by the government. Besides, the outstanding government loan of Rs 19.77 crore, along with accumulated interest of Rs 8.63 crore on it, will be converted into equity. # With an estimated 170,000 pilgrims scheduled to go for Haj this year, Air India would coordinate air operations from 21 cities, Bhopal and Goa being added to the list of embarkation points. The arrangement was approved by the Cabinet on Thursday. |
Agriculture insurance plan
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today approved the Modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme to make it more comprehensive and farmer friendly. The modified scheme aims at helping increased number of farmers in stabilising farm income at the time of crop failure on account of natural calamities.
The Ministry of Agriculture has been implementing the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme as a central sector scheme since the 1999-2000 Rabi season to insure the farming community against these risks.
CCEA also approved Rs 935 crore as the revised cost estimate for implementing the ‘E-Courts’ project. The cost approved earlier for the project in 2007 was Rs 441.8 crore. E-Courts is one of the mission mode projects of e-governance under the National e-Governance Plan.