PROVIDE PDS RATION TO MIGRANT WORKERS AT WORKSITES’ Saturday, 15 October 2016 | PNS | BALANGIR | in Bhubaneswar

PROVIDE PDS RATION TO MIGRANT WORKERS AT WORKSITES’

Saturday, 15 October 2016 | PNS | BALANGIR | in Bhubaneswar

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The Migration Information and Resource Centre, Bhubaneswar, has urged the State Government to supply food grain under the PDS scheme to migrant workers at worksites within the State.

In a petition submitted to the Labour and Employment department, the petition, citing the 2001Census report, said that there are 10 .8 millions migrants in Odisha.

Eighty per cent of intra-State migrants belong to weaker section and are eligible beneficiary of Government entitlements, but they don’t get basic entitlements and services, pointed out the memorandum.

The worksites like stone crusher, brick kiln and construction activities in city of Bhubaneswar attracts people from Bolangir, Nuapada, Kalhandi, Bargarh, Sonepur, Nabrangpur, Koraput and Mayurbhanj, which are most distress migration prone.

The poor workers can’t have access to the benefit of PDS when they temporarily move away from the village. The poor workers who toil hard at the urban areas in various construction sectors, do not get nutritious food, pointed out the memorandum.

Once the PDS system is made accessible to the poor migrants at their worksites, it would ensure their food and nutritional security, it maintained.

To ensure smooth functioning of PDS at worksite, the help of digitised card be taken. Moreover, the digital PDS card system can be converted to spilt card under RSBY. ADHAR platform may be also explored to make the PDS card available to the migrants at worksites, the memorandum said.

The nutritional security of migrant workers should also be accessed through the worksite Anganwadi centers, which will facilitate provisions of early childhood care nutrition, immunization and ante natal care where a large number of women and children are living.

The project could be taken up on an experimental basis in Bhubaneswar through Labour Welfare Board, which will be nodal agency for bringing interdepartmental convergence and collaboration with civil society, the memorandum added.