Needed, A Well-Crafted Social Security Net For All

August 24, 2023

GS Paper II Indian Polity and Governance

Context:

This article looks at the concerning scenario of the Social Security Schemes in India and suggests taking steps to have the fruits of growth and development.

Social Security:

A system of social protection that provides economic assistance to individuals and households facing certain life events, such as old age, unemployment, sickness, invalidity, work injury, maternity, or loss of a breadwinner.
In India, social security is provided by a variety of government schemes, as well as by private insurers and employers.
Some of the major social security schemes in India include are the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI), the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) and the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan Yojana (PM-SYM).

Concerning Data:

Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report, 2021-22: Around 53% of all of the salaried workforce does not have any social security benefits in India.
Ranking: Mercer CFS ranked India’s social security system at 40 out of 43 countries in 2021.
Very Less Access to Social Security Benefits: Approximately 91% of India’s workforce works in the informal sector that lacks access to social security.

Data by Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG):

In July 2022: The cess collected for the provision of social security to construction workers in Delhi was poorly utilized (approximately 94% of the money was not utilized).
In Haryana: The direct benefit scheme of the State’s Social Justice and Empowerment Department had seen the transfer of ₹ 98.96 crore to the accounts of deceased beneficiaries.
Budgetary cuts to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act continue.

Lagging Points:

Ignore: India’s policymakers have largely ignored social security.
Uncovering Many: While the Code on Social Security (2020) dealt fundamentally with formal enterprises and did not cover informal ones.
Less Budget Allocation: While policies are often announced, budgetary allocation has always been limited and utilization even less so.

Steps India Need to Take:

India should provide social security to all of its workforce, in a manner that is fiscally and administratively feasible.
- As per the requirement of the workforce (formal, informal and unemployed), the contributions should be mone.
Steps have already been taken and now further improvement is a desirable step like greater digitisation under the e-Shram platform.
Need for a pan-India Labor Force Card
Special attention is required for domestic workers (usually female) and migrant workers.
Need to Strengthen Existing Schemes with budgetary support and expansion of coverage.
- Expansion of the EPF, ESI, and NSAP with budgetary support and expansion of coverage.
Need to Raise Awareness to ensure more workers to avail benefits.
- Organizations such as the Self-Employed Women’s Association which run Shakti Kendras may be funded to run campaigns to provide greater information on social security rights.
Policymakers must focus on policies that enable equitable growth.
Learn From Others: India should learn from Brazilian good practices of social security, where it has the constitutional provisions that if there is a lack of funds, the National Treasury will step in (ILO, 2013).

Conclusion:

The time has come for India to consolidate its existing social security schemes and provide universal social security to its entire labor workforce as in two decades, India will be an aging society — for such workers with limited savings, there will be no significant social protection.

News Source: The Hindu