State mulls labour Act to check migrant workers…

SHILLONG: Deputy Chief Minister in-charge of Labour, Prestone Tynsong on Tuesday said the department has proposed a separate labour Act to deal with labourers from outside the state.
The government’s plan to frame a state Act comes in the wake of pressure groups taking law into their own hands in their bid to detect migrant labourers.
In the absence of a state act, the government is following the Interstate Migrant Workmen Act 1979 and Building and Other Constructions Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996.
However, these acts deal only with welfare measures of workers and do not have provisions to regulate the labourers.
Speaking to reporters, Tynsong said, “It is high time that we have our own separate Act as far as labourers from outside the state are concerned”. He said that having a separate Act will prevent duplicity or misunderstanding. He informed that the department is in consultation with the law department so that the proposed state Act does not come into conflict with related central acts.
Council cannot issue labour license
Tynsong also revealed that Sixth Schedule mentions nothing about labour license and hence the district councils are not authorised to issue labour license.
According to Tynsong, the district councils can only deal with trading license and not labour license.