Written by S S Nadar
Mumbai | 10 March 2023 12:59 IST

Fadnavis announced that a welfare board each would be constituted for auto and taxi drivers, and more than 3 crore workers in the unorganised sector

Paying heed to the long-pending demand for the formation of welfare boards for workers from the unorganised sector and for auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers, finance minister and deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis finally made a formal announcement to that effect during the Maharashtra budget session on Thursday. He announced that a welfare board each would be constituted for auto and taxi drivers, and more than 3 crore workers in the unorganised sector.

“For the benefit of the unorganised sector and to provide them with social security and welfare schemes at the state level, the Maharashtra State Unorganised Workers’ Welfare Board will be formed. Similarly, the Maharashtra State Auto-Rickshaw and Taxi Owners’ Welfare Board will also be formed,” Fadnavis said during his budget speech on Thursday.

Welcoming the state government’s decision, Keshav Kshirsagar, president, of Baghtoy Rickshawala Auto-Rickshaw Union, said, “On behalf of the Maharashtra Kamgar Sabha as well as Baghtoy Rickshawala, we express our heartfelt gratitude to the Maharashtra state government and we hope that in the coming time, these schemes will not remain just on paper but will actually benefit the workers in the unorganised sector.”

Hemant Kambale, an auto-rickshaw driver from Pune, said, “During the last three years, we have suffered a lot financially due to the pandemic and now through this welfare board, we hope to get some benefits from new schemes as well as help from the state government during such crises. This welfare board should be established soon and they should start disseminating information about various schemes to auto and taxi drivers.”