The appropriate governments have been empowered
to notify any employment in the schedule where the number of employees is 1,000
or more in a State and fix rates of minimum wages in respect to employees
employed therein, he said. The Minister said that presently there are 45
scheduled employments under central sphere and the workers employed in various
mini cement plants and petroleum products outlets are not included in the
scheduled employment of central sphere.
The rates of minimum wages fixed by Central Government are applicable to establishments under its authority, Railways, Administration, Mines, Oilfields, Major Ports and Corporations created under
Acts of Parliament, he said. In the unskilled section of agriculture sector,
rates of wages including Variable Dearness Allowance per day w.e.f April 1,
2014, are Rs 215, Rs 195 and Rs 193 in Area A, Area B and Area C respectively.
Similarly for the highly skilled in the same sector, it is Rs 283, 262 and Rs
235 for Areas A, B and C respectively, he said.
Replying to another question, Tomar said that
there are 56,90,636 beedi workers in the country as on July 31, 2014, in
various states. Under various medical assistance given to the beedi workers for
different diseases, 31,74,440 workers benefited from various health schemes in
2013-14. He said that there were 4,96,416 beneficiaries under educational
schemes in 2013-14 while the number of beneficiaries under group insurance
scheme in the same period was 7,02,320.
PTI
