Three thousand migrant workers would be registered for various entitlement schemes under the entitlement campaign run by Caritas India.

The initiative is rolled out from 16th September through 9 diocesan and secular organisations in 8 targeted States of Rajasthan, Punjab, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Goa and Gujarat. Caritas India under the Pravasi Bandhu programme is implementing this campaign with the support of volunteers for migrant workers to ensure a safe and dignified life for the workers.

The campaign register both potential and interstate migrants in the government’s social security schemes and other entitlements, such as registration in the e-Shram portal, the Builders and Other Construction Workers Act, widow and other worker programmes, pension programmes, MGNREGA, and other programmes and entitlements. 27 dedicated volunteers are driving this campaign by registering migrant workers and spreading awareness at various levels. The drive for the entitlements will also focus on the accessibility of these schemes.

Interstate migrant workers across rural and urban areas are mostly employed in unorganised sectors in India and face numerous problems with regard to their entitlements.

The migrants lives with poor access to available schemes and services, inadequate and inappropriate safeguards at worksites, poor quality of accommodation, long working hours, low wage compared to local workers, limited access to health care services, social exclusion, poor social interaction and lack of integration with the local community.

Pravasi Bandhu programme works with the migrant workers to facilitate and creates awareness among the potential migrant workers on skill building, linking them with employment opportunities, ensuring their identity card, registration, creating a database for rights and entitlements, financial inclusion, skill enhancement of women migrant workers at the destination, education of children of migrant workers, policy engagement and networking at state and national level. The services were provided through the help desk at the source states and Migrant Resource Centres at the destination.