April 2, 2021

Labour ministry launches surveys to track migrants, map employment generation

Livelihoods: The Ministry of Labour and Employment has launched two national surveys—All India Surveys on Migrant Workers (AISMW) and the All-India Quarterly Establishment based Employment Survey (AQEES). While the former is aimed at tracking migrants, their socio-economic conditions, and job preferences, the latter is meant to gather data on job creation by companies.

These are two of the five all India-level surveys that the Labour Bureau, which is part of the ministry, is planning to conduct this year.

For the migrants’ survey, which is to be conducted over a period of six months, the labour ministry will look at a sample size of 300,000 households, whereas for the one on employment, it will assess 150,000 companies every quarter.

This is not the first time that an employer survey is being done. The earlier quarterly employment survey had a sample size of 2,500 companies. AQEES, however, will be significantly larger in size and scope and will cover firms employing 10 or more workers.

The results of both the surveys will generate useful data for effective policymaking in the field of labour and employment, said labour minister Santosh Gangwar while flagging off the fieldwork for the two surveys.

The surveys will expand the scope of jobs mapping as firms having 10 or more workers will provide a more realistic picture of job growth. It will also offer an insight into the problems faced by various sectors including micro, medium, and small enterprises (MSMEs) and the action required to solve them.

India witnessed a mass exodus of migrant workers from urban areas to their homes during the COVID-19 induced lockdown. The unavailability of reliable data has led to uncertainty on their numbers, current working and living conditions, among other things. While the government estimates nearly 10 million people went back home, experts and observers argue the real figure could be much higher.

Read this article on why it is important to understand migrants’ lives to address their needs


May 20, 2021

Home Ministry extends validity period of FCRA registration certificates

Fundraising & Communications: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has issued a circular extending the validity of FCRA registration certificates to September 30th, 2021. This applies to all FCRA licences that have expired or will expire between September 29th, 2020 and May 31st, 2021. The decision to extend the deadline has been driven by the exigencies arising from the COVID-19 situation.

FCRA refers to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act 2010, which permits charitable organisations based in India to raise funds from foreign sources.

The order also clarified that nonprofits that have already opened an account and have the requisite permission to receive foreign aid, can henceforth receive it only in these newly-opened accounts.

The FCRA law was amended in September 2020 to include a clause that mandated that all nonprofits receiving foreign aid must necessarily open an account in State Bank of India’s New Delhi Main Branch. The government had initially set the deadline for this account opening as March 31st, 2021; it later extended it to June 30th, 2021 after several nonprofits argued in court that there had been delays because necessary approvals from MHA had not been received.

Several organisations have not been able to receive foreign funds during the crisis caused by the second wave, and this has impacted their COVID-19 relief efforts. Relaxing the foreign funding rules could significantly help organisations ramp up their operations to help individuals, supply critical healthcare equipment, and respond to communities in rural areas.

Read this article to know how amending the FCRA can have unforeseen implications.


May 20, 2021

Corporate spending on oxygen support and medical equipment now counts as CSR

Philanthropy & CSR: The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has issued a circular that allows corporate spending on health infrastructure for COVID-19 care to qualify as corporate social responsibility (CSR) expenditure.

This includes setting up medical oxygen generation and storage plants, manufacturing and supply of oxygen concentrators, ventilators, cylinders, and other medical equipment to counter COVID-19.  

The announcement comes at a time when all efforts are being directed towards expediting efforts to support the country’s healthcare infrastructure.

According to the circular, companies can now undertake projects and activities in collaboration with other companies using CSR funds. Additionally, they can contribute to specified research and development projects, as well as publicly funded universities and certain organisations that conduct research in science, technology, engineering, and medicine.

The government had earlier clarified that setting up makeshift hospitals and temporary COVID-19 care facilities would also be considered a CSR activity. Rajesh Verma, the Corporate Affairs Secretary, has requested businesses to consider converting vacant office buildings into COVID-19 facilities to cater to the rapidly increasing caseload.

Read this article to understand why media attention on COVID-19 deaths due to lack of oxygen in big cities has skewed donor priorities.