The Yogi Adityanath govt in Uttar Pradesh brings in ordinance that has suspended 35 of the 38 labour-related laws in the state.

Lucknow: The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has brought in an ordinance exempting businesses from all key labour laws for the next three years.

According to Labour Minister Swami Prasad Maurya, only three labour laws will be applicable in the state during this period apart from provisions related to children and women in the suspended laws.

The three include the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, Workmen Compensation Act, 1923, and the Bonded Labour Act, 1976. Section 5 of the Payment of Wages Act, 1936 (the right to receive timely wages) will also apply in the state during this period.

The decision to approve the Uttar Pradesh Temporary Exemption from Certain Labour Laws Ordinance, 2020, to exempt factories, businesses, establishments and industries from the purview of the laws, was taken on Wednesday in a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

The step is aimed at reviving and boosting various businesses and industries that have taken a hit due to the national lockdown, a UP government spokesman said.

In his statement to the media, Maurya said the Covid-19 pandemic had brought economic and industrial activity to a standstill. “To bring economic activities back on track, new industrial investments opportunities will have to be created,” he said. “The state needs to take steps to bring the economy back on track. That is why this step has been taken.”

According to Maurya, there are 38 laws regulating the labour sector of which 35 have been suspended for three years.