Labour Ministry is contemplating to repeal the three Legislation

Labour Ministry is contemplating to repeal the following three Legislation:-

• The Employees Liability Act, 1938

• The Personal Injuries (Compensation Insurance) Act, 1963; and

• The Personal Injuries (Emergency Provision) Act, 1962.

These Acts were enacted long ago in certain specific circumstances. Review of enforcement data reveals that no cases have been apparently registered under any of these Acts in the last several years. Hence, it is proposed to repeal these Acts,” said an official statement, adding that any comments on the issue can be submitted to the ministry by September 26.

Labour and employment minister Narendra Singh Tomar had on Monday also announced that his ministry is reviewing all 44 Central labour acts and would amend them as and when required. One of the last vestiges of British rule, the Employees’ Liability Act, 1938 seeks to put the onus on the employer to pay compensation to a worker for sustaining injuries at work.

“Conditions during which these legislation were enacted have changed. Further adequate safeguards are now in place for social security and ensuring right compensation tow workers who are injured during work,” pointed out an official, noting that schemes such as Employees Provident Fund and the related Employees State Insurance Scheme provides insurance as well as benefits to workers.

For instance, coinciding with the Sino-Indian war, the Personal Injuries (Emergency Provision) Act, 1962 was also enacted to ensure that workers on sustaining any personal injury during work can receive compensation even during the period of Emergency that may be called due to war, political unrest or natural calamity.

In a similar move last month, the ministry, which is also spearheading long pending reforms in labour laws had also announced its intention to repeal the Children (Pledging of Labour) Act, 1933 that sought to prevent pledging of children by parents or guardians in return of payment.  

Explaining its rationale for repeal, the ministry had noted that provisions of the Act were already covered by the Child Labour (Regulation and Prevention) Act while amendments were also being planned to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986. Prime Minister Narendra Modi too, had last month set up a separate committee to identify “obsolete” laws which he believes hamper governance by creating “avoidable confusion”.