Issue revised GOs on minimum wages, HC orders govt

Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Monday ordered the State government to issue revised GOs prescribing minimum rates of wages of the 68 scheduled employments within 6 weeks.

Approximately lakhs of workers in different sectors are expected to be benefitted when the State government will issue the revised minimum wage GOs.

According to one estimate, as many as 47 lakh persons are working in various factories, construction or maintenance of roads and building operations, stone breaking and stone crushing operations, construction of projects including dams and multipurpose projects, private motor transport, scattered across the Telangana State.

The High Court division bench comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice N.V. Shravan Kumar was dealing with the PIL filed by. Telangana Regional Trade Union Council, seeking directions to the State government to issue GOs pertaining to the revised minimum rates of wages of the 68 scheduled employments.

Chikkudu Prabhakar, counsel for the petitioner informed the division bench that the State government had issued two GOs dated June 25, 2021 and June 30, 2021, but the GOs have not been published in the Gazette.

Due to non publication of the GOs in the Gazette, the workers lose their financial benefit.

Sanjeev Kumar, special government pleader informed the division bench that the earlier GOs cited, which were issued will be withdrawn and fresh GOs will be issued revising the minimum wages and sought 6 weeks time to complete the process.

After hearing the contentions of the counsel for the petitioner and the special government pleader, the Chief Justice bench directed the State government to issue the revised minimum wages and publish them in the Gazette within a period of 6 weeks in accordance with the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act. The matter was adjourned for 6 weeks.