Chandigarh, January 1
Taking serious note of the irregularities related to the verification of work slips and registration of workers in the Haryana Labour Department, Chief Minister Sh. Nayab Singh Saini has directed immediate action. On Chief Minister’s orders, a high-level inquiry committee has been constituted to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter, which will submit its detailed report to the government within one month.
Media reports have claimed that the Labour Minister, Haryana, had written a letter to the Chief Minister informing him about the matter; however, no such letter was received in the Chief Minister’s Office. Nevertheless, a file on the issue was presented by the department, in which the Chief Minister was informed that the department had constituted a committee to investigate the matter and that reports from 13 districts had been prepared, while reports from the remaining nine districts were pending. Therefore, the department stated that a complete report would be submitted after receiving reports from the remaining districts.
The Chief Minister took the issue seriously and returned the file the very next day, directing the Labour Minister to submit a complete report from all districts along with accurate figures of financial loss. However, the report is still pending. The issue pertains to construction workers and the benefits provided to them under various schemes of the Labour Department. It has been alleged that the works on which these individuals claimed to have laboured were not genuine, thereby casting doubt on their registration as building and construction workers.
Considering the seriousness of the allegations, the Chief Minister has constituted a high-level committee under the chairmanship of Sh. Pankaj Aggarwal, IAS, with Sh. Rajiv Rattan, IAS, and Sh. Pankaj Nain, IPS, as members.
The committee will investigate the entire matter and ascertain the irregularities committed by various officers and other individuals. In addition, the committee will also recommend corrective or preventive measures to ensure that such incidents do not occur in the future. After examining all facts, the committee will submit its report within one month.
