Question : Welfare of Agricultural Labourers

(a)the steps taken by the Government for the welfare of agricultural labourers in the country, if so, the number of agricultural labourers who benefited from the schemes in Purulia of West Bengal, Supaul of Bihar and Jharkhand;
(b)the details of the welfare schemes run by the Government for unorganized workers especially for rural and agricultural workers; and
(c)the details of funds allocated to West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand under these schemes in the last three years and the current year, scheme-wise and District-wise?

MINISTER OF STATE FOR LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
(SHRI RAMESWAR TELI)

(a) to (c): As per the Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008, the Government is mandated to provide Social Security to the workers of unorganised sector including agricultural labourers by formulating suitable welfare schemes on matters relating to life and disability cover, health and maternity benefits, old age protection etc. The details of the social security schemes are as follow:
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(i) Life and disability cover is provided through Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Surksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) launched in 2015. The Benefits under these schemes are Rs. 2 lakh on death due to any reason or permanent disability, Rs. 2.00 lakh on death due to accident and Rs. 1 lakh on Partial disability on an annual premium of Rs. 330/- and Rs. 12/- respectively.
The number of persons enrolled under PMJJBY/PMSBY schemes in the state of Bihar, West Bengal and Jharkhand are as under:
State PMJJBY PMSBY
Bihar 42,85,468 1,39,69,196
West Bengal 42,96,384 1,49,77,930
Jharkhand 18,86,299 58,90,405
(ii) The health and maternity benefits are ensured through Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) under deprivation and occupational criteria. It provides health insurance coverage upto Rs.5.00 lakhs per family for secondary and tertiary care related hospitalization. The Grant-in-aids released to the Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal for implementation of the AB-PMJAY during last three years is as under:
(Rs. in crores)
State FY 2018-19 to2020-21 FY 2021-22 Total
Bihar 170.76 55.95 226.71
Jharkhand 396.99 7.98 404.97
West Bengal 31.28 0 31.28

AB-PMJAY was implemented in West Bengal till 10th January 2019, following which the State government decided to withdraw from the implementation of the scheme.
As on 03.02.2022, a total of 1.69 lakh and 92.7 lakh individuals have been issued Ayushman Cards in Supaul district of Bihar and in the State of Jharkhand respectively.
(iii) In order to provide old age protection, the Government of India launched Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan (PM-SYM) pension yojana in 2019. It provides monthly minimum assured
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pension of Rs. 3000/- after attaining the age of 60 years. The workers in the age group of 18-40 years whose monthly income is Rs. 15000/- or less can join the PM-SYM Scheme. Under this scheme 50% monthly contribution is payable by the beneficiary and equal matching contribution is paid by the Central Government. Under this scheme, the fund for Government contribution is released to LIC of India which is a designated Fund Manager of the scheme. As on 28.01.2022, a total 3473, 4359 and 130571 workers have been enrolled under the schemes in Supaul district of Bihar, Purulia district of West Bengal and in the state of Jharkhand respectively.
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