₹5,000 aid for workers who lost income during building ban

The Delhi government on Thursday said it has allotted ₹5,000 each for 83,183 construction workers whose livelihoods suffered during last year’s construction ban due to a spike in pollution. The amounts will be credited to their accounts in two working days, said officials.

“These workers are the builders of our nation and strengthen our country. Our cities, buildings, and nations stand because of their hard work today. Therefore, the honour and interests of the workers are the priority of our government. Construction activities were banned in Delhi earlier which affected the livelihood of workers,” deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said in a statement.

All construction workers who registered with the Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board (DBOCWWB) before November 24, 2021, when the ban on construction was imposed, are eligible for a pollution subsistence grant, the government said in a statement. Over 83,000 construction workers had not received the grant in November 2021 because they did not renew their registration.

The state had distributed the pollution subsistence grant — a total amount of ₹245 crore — to 491,488 construction workers registered with the board in November last year. An additional ₹41.9 crore will be distributed among over 83,000 workers now.

According to Sisodia, there are 1.1 million construction workers in Delhi at present, of whom 850,000 are registered with the board.

Sisodia urged construction workers eligible for the grant to amend their bank details on an e-district website free of cost, so that their applications are processed in the next payment cycle. After registration, all construction workers can also benefit from various welfare schemes, he said.