November 29, 2001

        An Insurance Scheme named "Ashirya Bima Yojna" has been launched to provide social security cover to workers adversely affected due to loss of jobs. This was stated by the Labour Minister, Shri Sharad Yadav in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today. He said that that four nationalised general insurance companies launched the scheme on 10^th of October as a follow up to the announcement made while presenting this years’ budget. The Minister informed the house that the feasibility of introducing an insurance scheme to protect the interest of retrenched workers is also being explored within the framework of the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act. Shri Yadav said that the department of public enterprises has also introduced a scheme for counselling, retraining and re-deployment of rationalized employees of the central public sector undertakings. He said that the scheme has been launched with the objective of re-orienting these employees through short duration training Programmes to encourage them for self employment after seeking VRS or having been retrenched.