Core sanitation staff in Odisha to get ESI advantages, worker’s compensation 

By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: Core sanitation staff engaged in several hazardous works within the State can now avail advantages of Employee’s Compensation Act and Employees State Insurance (ESI) Act beneath Garima scheme. A notification to this impact was issued by the Housing and Urban Development division on Friday.

According to it, the disablement and illness compensation advantages offered beneath the Employee’s Compensation Act, 1923 and the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948 will probably be prolonged to the grade-I and II core sanitation staff. Both the acts present advantages in case of incapacity, everlasting or non permanent, and illness arising out of any hazardous work that want absence from work beneath medical grounds.

Till now, the grade-II core sanitation staff weren’t coated beneath the Employee’s Compensation Act at current. Besides, the ESI Act covers solely these core sanitation staff who’ve been registered with ESI Corporation.

“As many core sanitation workers had not registered with the corporation, they were debarred from availing the benefits provided under the ESI legislation despite the arduous nature of their work,” an official of the division stated. He added that the contemporary determination will prolong the advantage of the acts to core sanitation staff of each the classes.

The State Government launched Garima scheme in 2020 to make sure security and dignity of round 20,000 core sanitation staff who usually endure partial, everlasting or non permanent incapacity or illness attributable to extended publicity to poisonous supplies and dangerous waste whereas working in hazardous situations.

H&UD Minister Pratap Jena stated, “Extending benefits of the Employee’s Compensation and ESI act is a welfare measure to protect the most disadvantaged people of our society.”Considering the character of labor of core sanitation staff, the State authorities had authorised ‘risk and hardship’ allowance for such staff final 12 months to supply them a 15 laptop incentive on their wages.