Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Construction board to expel bogus workers

Special Correspondent

Ineligible members have been issued notice to give up their membership in three months or face expulsion.

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Board has initiated steps to expel bogus members availing themselves of the pension and benefits paid by the board.

Chairman K.V. Jose and secretary G.S. Sreelatha Devi told a press conference here on Wednesday that at least 30 per cent of the 13 lakh members had used devious means for enrolment.

These persons, they said, were siphoning off a huge amount and bleeding the board dry.

Mr. Jose said the fake membership was forcing the board to shoulder a heavy financial burden every year. "The board is currently disbursing Rs.35 crore as pension and other benefits to the members.

"If the situation continues, we will find it difficult to continue this assistance to the eligible members. The mounting liability may even lead to the collapse of the board," he said.

The board chairman said many of the bogus members had made their way into the rolls of the board using work experience certificates issued by trade unions.

Multiple unions

He admitted that the absence of a system to check the authenticity of the certificates was also responsible for the irregularity.

"The multiplicity of trade unions is another reason. In Thiruvananthapuram district alone, there are 92 trade unions," he said.

Mr. Jose said the ineligible members had been issued notice to give up their membership in three months or face expulsion.

"The board will return the monthly contribution paid by the bogus members who are prepared to give up their membership."

He said steps were on to launch a spot verification campaign to identify bogus members.

Mr. Jose called on the trade union leadership to help the board identify and expel bogus members as well as to prevent such irregularities in future.

"They should realise that the very survival of the board is at stake."

He proposed a regulatory system for the trade unions to check malpractices.

The board, he said, was facing a huge revenue deficit caused by poor collection of the cess imposed on construction activities.

"The cess, which forms the backbone of our revenue, is collected by the Labour Department.

"Not even 10 per cent of the eligible amount is collected," he said.

The construction workers' board has appealed to the State Government to give it powers to collect the cess on its own.

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