Chandigarh, December 29
Serious irregularities related to work slips (work receipts) prevailing for a long time in the Haryana Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board, functioning under the Labour Department, have come to light. Preliminary investigations suggest that the scam could amount to approximately Rs.1,500 crore. Considering the gravity of the matter, Haryana’s Labour Minister Anil Vij has written to the Chief Minister, recommending a thorough investigation by a reputed agency.
Sharing details, the Labour Minister said that recently he chaired a meeting of the Board, during which irregularities were found not only in the appointment of Board members but also in the distribution of benefits under welfare schemes meant for construction workers. Following this, he ordered an immediate inquiry.
Vij said that initial investigations were conducted in Hisar, Kaithal, Jind, Sirsa, Faridabad and Bhiwani districts, where large-scale irregularities were detected. Subsequently, instructions were issued to Deputy Commissioners of all districts to constitute district-level committees comprising a Labour Department officer along with three other officers. These committees are carrying out physical verification of online work slips issued between August 2023 and March 2025. The verification process began around four months ago, and 100 percent verification has been completed in 13 districts so far.
The Labour Minister informed that in the 13 districts—Karnal, Rewari, Nuh (Mewat), Mahendragarh, Gurugram, Jhajjar, Palwal, Panipat, Rohtak, Sonipat, Panchkula, Sirsa and Kaithal—a total of 5,99,758 work slips were issued. Of these, only 53,249 were found to be valid, while 5,46,509 were declared invalid. Similarly, out of 2,21,517 labour registrations, only 14,240 workers were found eligible after verification, whereas 1,93,756 registrations were found to be invalid.
Vij said it has become clear that in many places entire villages were fraudulently registered and work slips were generated so that ineligible persons could avail benefits of government schemes. On average, a worker receives benefits worth around Rs.2.5 lakh under various schemes, which could result in a massive financial loss to the government. He said that “Those who are not eligible are availing benefits. This is outright loot, causing the government a financial loss running into hundreds of crores.”
Vij further said that the verification committees are examining all aspects, including authenticity of workplaces, actual participation in construction activities, employer details, local inquiries and field inspections. During the verification period, RTS timelines were stopped, SARAL Centres were instructed not to accept new applications, and necessary information was issued to all grievance redressal platforms including CM Window, Jan Samvad, CPGRAMS, HHRC, HRTSC etc. Vij clarified that already approved pension schemes have not been stopped, while benefits under death, accident and funeral assistance schemes are being released on priority.
Vij added that Haryana Government implements several welfare schemes for construction workers, including maternity and paternity benefits, education assistance, scholarships, reimbursement for technical education, pensions, marriage assistance, medical aid, housing loans and accident compensation, aimed at empowering genuine workers. These benefits should reach only those workers who are duly registered after verification of at least 90 days of work. The Labour Minister reiterated that there will be no compromise on corruption at any level and strict action will be ensured against those found guilty.
