Ministry of Labour: Last week, top officials from the Union Labour and Employment Ministry said they were working on a system to process accident insurance claims from unorganized employees who have registered on the e-Shram platform, which has so far received over 27 crore registrations.
The portal was launched six months ago with the goal of compiling a nationwide database of unorganized workers and making social security benefits more accessible to them. Workers would be entitled to a total of 2 lakh in accident insurance, according to assurances made at the time.
Ministry of Labour: e-shram portal to be linked PMSBY
According to a top Ministry official, talks are on to link the e-Shram portal to the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana, the government’s existing accident insurance program. Workers would be able to receive direct benefit transfers (DBT) through their e-Shram unique ID number under the plan. The unique IDs on the e-Shram portal had the same series as the Employees Provident Fund Organisation’s (EPFO) universal account number, according to the official (UAN).
A “system for disposal” of the claims, according to another functionary, is in the works. The Ministry projected that there were 38 crore unorganized sector workers in the country when the platform was launched in August 2021. According to a Ministry official, a study of the current registrations is being conducted, and a fresh campaign to encourage more workers to register is being planned.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the connecting of four portals in her Budget Speech 2022-2023: the National Career Service, e-Shram, UDYAM (for individuals interested in beginning MSMEs), and ASEEM (Atmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping). On April 20, the Labour Ministry revealed that the NCS and e-Shram portals had just been interconnected.
“Through this linkage, unorganized employees who are registered on the e-Shram can easily register on NCS and search for better job prospects.” “To date, over 26,000 e-Shram beneficiaries have registered on NCS and have begun to benefit from this linkage,” the Ministry stated in a statement.