-SATISH HANDA

While most of the states are worried about possible labour pangs in industrial sectors in the post-Covid 19 scenario, about 30.2 lac people have returned back to work in the labour-deficit state of Haryana, Dushyant Chautala deputy chief minister Haryana said during a summit ‘Beyond the lockdown.’ Organised by ASSOCHAM. He said, state government is in touch on a daily basis on bringing back labour to the state industries. Chautala added that earlier the state had registered labour of 28-29 lac, but today labour has been added especially at construction sites, 30.2 lac people are back to work as of date and big number still coming out,” said Chautala also Haryana Labour and Employment minister.

Chautala said that Haryana government has given permission to IT sector to work with 75 per cent capacity. He said, phase-by-phase in another week’s time we can have little more restrictions being lifted in the states and will issue guidelines on how things will work out. Chautala further added, state government cannot lift up everything at a stretch because this is something that India has been fighting as a unit but today if we talk about opening up, we have to open up, we have to live with Covid some things have to be arranged in a manner that there should be restrictions on public movement, international flights coming in but local flights should have started by now, there should not be trains running now to big cities to and forth but there has to be regional movement also effectively done.

Chautala said while Haryana has opened up all bus transport to orange and green zones, that has to be picked up by most of the states now where things are under control. He continued, noting that Haryana was quick and responsive when it came to restarting the industry, He said, on April 20, permissions was given and today the state has approximately 30 lac employees back to work and this is something we are focusing on in our nearly 40,000 plus industries which have opened up, be it construction, industrial units, e-commerce websites and others and our enterprise promotion policy 2020 is going to be out in couple of months and we need to plan, have already taken a decision that HSIDC wing of our industrial areas is going to give land on lease for industries to set up which has capability to work more than seven years. Chautala further said that Haryana would make labour shelters for approximately 1 lac plus labourers in the state and it has been observed in last three days that people who had migrated to their homes about a month ago are eager to return and start their work and that is a positive time and state industry will flourish again.  Chautala said, “We cannot be too open like UP which has suspended all labour laws for next three years or Rajasthan which is implementing changes, but yes we need to change. I need inputs from each one that we need such changes that will keep the benefits of labours invested and also help industry to perform better, especially when it comes to registration of labour unions or relaxation in the schedules of state government and in terms of industry as well as we have a new enterprise promotion policy coming up this year”. Chautala said that ASSOCHAM can be a great help to provide inputs on how global investors can be diverted to India as country have the biggest land bank available for industries to come, there needs to be rates’ revision, we are taking care that there will not be any increase in rates in any of the industrial in our Haryana state but if we need to give it out on lease that is a call we will take.

Apoorva Kumar Singh, secretary, Industries & Commerce, Government of Haryana said that every country and state itself is making a pitch for getting investments ex-China either as an alternate source or when they want to relocate or shift their manufacturing base totally from China. He said, instead of having an unfair competition, Government oI India would do well to co-ordinate playing the role of a catalyst with Japanese investors and companies. Amid others addressed were Dibya Shankar Mishra minister for industries energy MSME Govt of Odisha, Mekapati Gowtham Reddy industries & commerce minister Govt of Andhra Pradesh, Dr Guruprasad Mohapatra secretary, DPIIT Government of India, Jayesh Ranjan principal secretary (I&C) and (IT) Government of Telangana, Dr K.K. Dwivedi secretary & commissioner (Industry) Government of Assam, Acquino Vimal Deputy Chief of Mission Embassy of India Beijing, Aigars Rostovskis president Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ms Maria Nemenman Deputy Head of the Mission Embassy of Israel, Vineet Agarwal senior vice-president ASSOCHAM, Mr Deepak Sood secretary general, Amrit Sagar Mittal chairman North Regional Development Council and Vice Chairman International Tractors Ltd (Sonalika); Ms Swati Rangachari co-chair WTO, Trade & Investment and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Sterlite Technologies Ltd, Ramesh Nair, CEO Adani Solar and Neeraj Athalye Vice President & Head Customer Experience Solutions SAP India.