| | Ministers misuse welfare funds to woo voters | | Arun Singh
Jammu, Aug 22: In order to consolidate their vote banks, some sitting ministers are misusing the welfare funds meant for labourers under Building and Others Construction Workers Welfare Board by giving it in undeserving hands.
Sources told Early Times that Government had constituted Building and Others Construction Workers Welfare Board (BOCWWB) for welfare of labourer to provide them various financial assistances working in building and other allied construction works in the state. “The board was constituted in 2008 and since then it started charging one percent cess on all construction works casting over Rs 10 lakhs from 2009 as a result Board has collected more than Rs 300 crore till date and had disbursed just only 40 crore on the welfare of the workers,” they said.
The benefit of this fund is only given to the registered card holders but some ministers have themselves engaged in distributing registration cards to the people of their respective constituency to provide them undue benefits just for sake of votes, they said.
“These ministers organize public meetings in their areas where officials of the concerning department are also present there and registration cards are distributed among the people wherein most of the recipients don’t fall in category the beneficiaries just only to consolidate their vote bank,” sources said.
All rules and regulations have been violated in distributing registration cards, as per rules proper verification is conducted of the seekers by the Block Development Officers (BDOs), Sarpanchs, and Panchs who verified the seeker which should have done at least 90 days labour work but ministers brushing aside all the norms givingaway registration cards, they add.
“There are over one lakhs registered workers with BOCWWB involved in different building construction activities and out of which 60 % belongs to Kashmir region while rest of 40 % to Jammu region”, sources said adding that maximum registrations have been observed in Poonch district with 23000 and Srinagar 12000. It is pertinent to mention here that registered construction workers are entitled to give various financial assistances under Building Construction Workers Welfare Act including Education Assistance for maximum two wards of a worker.
“Rs 2500 per child/ per annum assistance to 1st to 5th class student, Rs 3500 to the students of 9th and 10th class, Rs 6000 assistance to 11th and 12th class, a student perusing graduation is given Rs 10,000, PG student Rs 15, 000, student perusing professional degree gets Rs 50,000 per annum”, they informed. They further said that Rs 25,000 is provided in marriage assistance and in death case Rs 2,00,000 is paid to the family of deceased worker. |
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