New Delhi, 24 February (HS): Union Labor and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Monday that social security remains a basic pillar of India's commitment towards social justice. He said that its reach has increased from 24.4 percent of the total population in 2021 to 48.8 percent in 2024.

The Union Labor Minister said this while addressing the regional dialogue on the 74th Foundation Day of Social Justice and ESIC here. Addressing the inaugural session of the Regional Dialogue on Social Justice 2025, he said, The unemployment rate has come down from 6 percent in 2017-18 to 3.2 percent in 2023-24 while the labor force participation rate has increased from 49.8 percent to 60.1 percent. He informed that the integration of 29 labour laws into four simple labour codes has promoted labour welfare, universal wages and social security. Along with this, safe working conditions have been ensured. The Union Minister said that these reforms have also improved the ease of doing business by streamlining registration, licensing and compliance processes. These positive indicators underline the impact of our reforms and initiatives. He said that labour reforms have been the basis of efforts to modernise India's workforce policies.

Manushk Mandaviya said that empowering women is another important focus area, adding that India's Union Budget 2025-26 has an ambitious target of achieving 70 per cent female workforce participation by 2047. Talking about taking advantage of the demographic dividend, he said that 65 per cent of India's population is below the age of 35. Therefore, skill development is a national priority. He said that the employability of Indian graduates has increased from 33.95 per cent in 2013 to 54.81 per cent in 2024. The Minister of Labor and Employment said that the National Career Service Portal has provided more than 440 million job opportunities. Manushk Mandaviya said that the social security schemes run by the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) and the Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) have been modernized so that more workers can get its benefits. He said that there are more than 30 crore registered unorganized workers in the e-shram portal. He wished everyone on the 74th Foundation Day of ESIC dedicated to the welfare of workers.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar