AHMEDABAD: Despite massive cess collections meant to uplift construction workers, Gujarat’s welfare machinery has failed to deliver, says report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on Welfare of Building and Other Construction Workers.
Only 32 per cent of released funds were utilised, while 13 of 31 welfare schemes were shut down, leaving thousands without pensions, housing support, or food assistance.
Meanwhile, municipal bodies sat on crores of rupees in unaccounted cess, exposing a complete breakdown in accountability.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) report on the Welfare of Building and Other Construction Workers for the period ending March 2022 was tabled in the Gujarat Assembly on Wednesday.
Even the funds released to the Board were grossly underutilized. Against Rs 2,544.81 crore sanctioned, only Rs 808.49 crore (32%) was spent between 2006 and 2023. Rs 782.03 crore on welfare schemes and a meager Rs 26.46 crore on administration.
A staggering Rs 1,736.32 crore remained unspent as of March 2023, even as construction workers struggled for basic welfare. Welfare schemes themselves collapsed under mismanagement.
Of the 31 schemes active between 2017-22, 13 schemes (42%) were either discontinued or put on hold.
The Old Age Pension Scheme, a lifeline for aging workers, has been frozen since May 2019, leaving thousands without financial support.
The Shramik Annapurna Yojana, which provides subsidized meals, operated in only nine districts out of Gujarat’s 33 during 2017-22. Even by June 2024, it covered just 19 districts, excluding nearly half the state.
Housing schemes performed even worse. Under the Nanajee Deshmukh Awas Yojana and Housing Subsidy Scheme, only 37 workers received benefits in five years, with zero beneficiaries under the Housing Subsidy Scheme.
Meanwhile, workers continued to live in precarious, unsafe conditions.
Audit scrutiny revealed delays, unjustified rejections, and exclusion of eligible workers across multiple welfare schemes.
In October 2020, the Board released Rs 52 crore to seven municipal corporations under the Corona Surakhsha Kavach Yojana to provide protective measures during the pandemic.
But by March 2023, Rs 36 crore remained unaccounted for, and no steps were taken to recover Rs 12.50 crore of unutilized grants from three corporations.
Cess collection itself was riddled with irregularities. Though the state revised cess rates in September 2013 to 1% of actual construction costs, auditors found non-compliance and delays across five districts.
Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation failed to deposit Rs 72.06 crore collected between March 2021 and March 2022.
Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation had never separately accounted for cess collections since its inception in 2010.
Following audit pressure, it finally deposited ₹27.52 crore for 2018-23, but only in September 2024. In 20 units across five districts, cess deposits were delayed by one to 16 months, violating rules.
Meanwhile, inspections, though increasing from 799 in 2017 to 3,378 in 2022, were still inadequate.
At least 2,146 registered establishments 15% of total were never inspected, allowing unsafe practices to flourish unchecked.
Even flagship programs showed mixed results. The Dhanvantari Aarogya Rath Yojana, launched in 2013 to provide free on-site medical care, was widely appreciated.
In a beneficiary survey, all 50 surveyed workers confirmed receiving treatment, and 35 of 42 received free prescribed medicines.
However, this success stood in stark contrast to the widespread failure of other schemes. The audit’s final finding is damning: Gujarat’s construction welfare system has become a black hole of unspent funds, stalled schemes, and neglected workers.
While nearly Rs 4,800 crore in cess collections flowed into government accounts over 17 years, only a fraction reached the workers it was meant to protect a glaring indictment of systemic apathy and mismanagement.