Nidhi Aapke Nikat or PF near you, an outreach programme of Employees' Provident Fund Organisation for redressal of grievances of its subscribers, as well as employers and other stakeholders yielding good results said KV Seshagiri Rao, Enforcement Officer, EPFO Visakhapatnam. The programme is conducted on the 27th of every month.  
 

Speaking during an interaction session on the sidelines of workshop on Contract Labour Management & Factories act organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Visakhapatnam Chapter here on Friday, Mr Seshagiri Rao said the Nidhi Aapke Nikat will not be only grievance redressal platform and information exchange network for the employers and the employees but also a platform for exchange of information.
 
Stating further he said, “In this programme, a help desk will be created where members will get the online services like filing of online claims etc. Grievance redressal of the members will be done on the spot and in case any grievance could not be redressed on the spot, it will be registered on the grievance portal of EPFO and will be resolved on priority”. As a matter of fact, EPFO will reach out to the stakeholders, thereby increasing accessibility and visibility of the organisation, in all the districts of the country.
 
Explaining the salient features about the Employees’ State Insurance Scheme of India (ESIC) Pradeep Behera, Assistant Director – Sub Regional Office, (ESIC), Visakhapatnam said the ESIC is a multi-faceted Social Security Scheme designed to provide socio-economic protection to 'employees' in the organised sector. It protects employees against sickness, maternity, disablement, and death as a result of a work-related injury, as well as provides medical care to insured employees and their families.

 Mr. Behera reiterated that  it is the employer's responsibility to enroll eligible employees in the ESIC program. The contributions are based on the workers' earning ability as a fixed proportion of their salary, yet they are awarded social security benefits based on individual needs without discrimination.  
 

Earlier in the day, Aditya Kamath, Head of legal audit and Advisory of BCP Associates & LLP took the training session on contract labour management, wherein they shared the fundamental concepts under the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) and shared industry trends and experience related to Management of contract labour. At the same time, the speakers also urged participants to duly follow the need for Compliance checks like CLRA, EPF and ESI, minimum wage, bonus and gratuity. 
 
Addressing the participants for the workshop, Chairman, Visakhapatnam Dr. P P Lal Krishna, said Contract Labour plays an important role in Industry, this was evident during Covid-19 which reiterated the importance, their value and contribution. Organizations should Engage and mange Contract Labour strictly as per statutory provisions, through Independent Service Providers and carry out reasonable checking of their credentials before engaging them to provide services in your organisation.

Dr P S Tagore, Convenor, CII Visakhapatnam HR & IR Panel also spoke on the occasion. Over 100 members from various sectors actively took part in the workshop and gained keen insights about the latest regulations on PPF, EPF and ESIC.