Employment-Linked Incentive: Labour Ministry To Move Cabinet Note Soon

Union Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday said the ministry will move a Cabinet note on the employment-linked incentive (ELI) scheme announced in the Union Budget 2024-25 in July. The minister emphasised upon the importance of a robust mechanism to ensure that the benefits of the ELI Scheme reach the true beneficiaries.

"The ministry is finalising a Cabinet note on ELI scheme and it will be soon placed before the Cabinet for approval," he told reporters, while giving a report card of the first 100 days of the Modi 3.0 government.

The ELI Scheme aims to create over 2 crore jobs in the country in a period of two years. This will significantly contribute to increasing employment opportunities and enhancing livelihood.

Three schemes for 'Employment Linked Incentive' were announced in Union Budget 2024-25 as part of the Prime Minister's package of five schemes and initiatives to facilitate employment, skilling and other opportunities for 4.1 crore youth over a 5-year period with a central outlay of Rs 2 lakh crore.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced in the Union Budget that the government will launch three employment-linked schemes based on enrolment in Employees' Provident Fund Organization (EPFO).

Mandaviya said the e-Shram portal completed registration of over 30 crore unorganised workers on Aug. 31, 2024 in a short span of three years, showcasing its rapid and widespread adoption.

"As announced in the Budget, the ministry is developing the e-Shram portal as a one-stop solution with the aim to facilitate access of unorganised labour to various social security schemes being implemented by various ministries/departments through single platform," he said.

In future, the minister said integration with other schemes like PM Matru Vandana Yojana, Shramik Suraksha Yojana of Postal Department, Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission, etc, will also be done.

The portal will help identify registrants who have not yet received the benefits of various schemes so that such workers can be provided benefit in a targeted manner based on their eligibility, he added.

Mandaviya said a platform workers' module has been developed (in these 100 days) on e-Shram to facilitate verification of platform workers registered on eShram through aggregators.

Testing of this module with selected aggregators has been successfully completed, he added. According to him, it will also enable the ministry to make schemes for platform workers.

Mandaviya said National Career Service (NCS) portal is being upgraded to provide a more user-friendly and efficient interface for job seekers and employers.

He also said the Central Board of Trustees of EPFO has approved a proposal for a Centralized Pension Payment System (CPPS), EPS Pensioners to get pension from any bank, any branch, anywhere in India from January 1, 2025.