Shimla: Chairman, Himachal Pradesh Building & Other Construction Workers Welfare Board, Nardev Kanwar, today, while addressing a press conference here, said that the Board would disburse financial assistance amounting to Rs. 20.61 crore to 4,967 eligible beneficiaries under 14 welfare schemes of the Board on 15 August, 2026.
Kanwar said that, 4,84,860 workers have been registered under the Board. The present state governement had already disbursed around Rs. 95 crore to construction workers and their families under various welfare schemes during last three and a half years. He said that the Board has set a target of disbursing Rs. 300 crore during the coming year to extend the benefits of welfare schemes to a larger number of eligible workers.
Emphasizing transparency and accountability in the functioning of the Board, Kanwar said that the Board had undertaken 98,000 E-KYC verification of registered workers to identify ineligible beneficiaries. He said that during the previous BJP tenure, around 70,000 ineligible workers were registered in 2021-22, and approximately Rs. 176 crore was disbursed to them within nine months merely for political gains. He said that these ineligible beneficiaries have now been identified through E-KYC process and corrective measures are being taken to ensure that welfare assistance reaches genuine and eligible workers.
He further said that the Board is ensuring that financial assistance is transferred directly to eligible beneficiaries through RTGS, making the payment system more transparent, direct and accountable.
Kanwar said that the Board was providing financial assistance to construction workers under various welfare schemes covering education, marriage, healthcare, maternity and paternity support, housing, death and funeral assistance and other social security needs.
Giving details of the assistance to be disbursed, Kanwar said that Rs. 8.98 crore has been allocated under the Marriage Assistance Scheme and Rs. 7.89 crore under the Education Assistance Scheme. Other major allocations include Rs. 1.49 crore under Death/Funeral Assistance, Rs. 89.77 lakh under the CM/PM Awas Yojana, Rs. 61 lakh under the Single Women/Deserted/Divyang Women category and Rs. 38.02 lakh under the Maternity/Paternity Assistance Scheme.
He said that the Board was spending the maximum amount under the Education Assistance Scheme which reflects its priority towards supporting the education of workers’ children. Under the scheme, 2,788 beneficiaries would receive financial assistance, followed by 1,758 beneficiaries under the Marriage Assistance Scheme.
Kanwar said that Hamirpur has the highest number of beneficiaries, with 1,298 beneficiaries receiving Rs. 5.43 crore, followed by Kangra with 720 beneficiaries receiving Rs. 2.89 crore, Una with 606 beneficiaries receiving Rs. 2.52 crore and Mandi with 571 beneficiaries receiving Rs. 2.80 crore. Beneficiaries from Shimla, Sirmaur, Chamba, Bilaspur, Kullu, Kinnaur and Solan would also receive assistance under various welfare schemes.
He said that efforts are being made to ensure that all eligible workers receive the benefits of the welfare schemes without unnecessary delay.
Kanwar said that the Board was making all possible efforts to ensure that public funds reach genuine and eligible construction workers. He said that the objective of the Board was not merely to disburse financial assistance but also to strengthen the social security system for construction workers and their families and ensure that welfare benefits are delivered in a transparent, efficient and accountable manner.
