States must pay compensation to construction workers affected by GRAP even without judicial orders: SC

The Supreme Court ordered Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to pay compensation for construction workers every time they are affected by the closure of activities due to grape measures in Delhi-DNCR, even if there is no specific court order on it. A Bank of Judges Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said that compensation must be paid to affected workers who use funds collected as labor cessation.

The Anti-Contamination Response Action Plan (GRAP) are implemented based on the average air quality in Delhi-NCR.

The Bank said: “As for 2024 and 2025, we have been concerned, we have issued instructions to the State to pay compensation. We make it clear that from now on each time the construction activities are required due to the implementation of grape measures, the compensation will be paid to the affected workers in terms of instructions issued by this Court dated November 24, 2021.” ”

“Even if there is no specific address of the court to pay compensation, the NCR states will pay compensation,” he said.

During Friday’s hearing, the Court was informed that Haryana, in the first and second phases of GRAP-4, has paid compensation at 2,68,759 and 2,24,88 workers, respectively.

In addition to this, the process of paying compensation to around 95,000 workers for the period Grap January 4, 2025 is underway. Delhi’s lawyer told the court that the compensation had been paid to 93,272 workers and that the verification process for the remaining registered workers is in Progreso. The Rajasthan government revealed that compensation had been paid to 3,197 workers, while UTTAR Pradesh informed that the compensation had been disbursed to 4,88,246, 4,84,157 and 691 workers affected during phases 1, 2 and 3 of Grap, respectively.

The Superior Court had previously arrested the Delhi government for not paying the full subsidy of subsistence to construction workers, who were without work due to the curbs imposed to combat air pollution in the national capital.

The Delhi government was ordered to convene a meeting of the Union of Workers to guarantee its registration.

Similar addresses for Rajasthan were approved, where two Bharatpur and Alwar districts fall in the NCR, in addition to 14 districts of Haryana and eight UP districts, to convene a meeting of workers’ unions and pay the subsistence allocation.

On December 2, the Superior Court ordered the main secretaries of the NCR states to appear before it by means of videoconference to inform whether or not any subsistence assignment to construction workers who were without work due to the restrictions were paid.