NOIDA: To ensure better living conditions for the city’s growing construction workforce, Noida Authority is drawing up a policy that may require developers and contractors to set up labour camps with hygienic accommodation with basic amenities, like toilets, clean water, electricity and waste management systems, before beginning any construction work.
The policy may also include welfare provisions such as access to medical aid, regular health check-ups and schooling facilities for children who accompany parents to work sites.
Currently, most workers reside in makeshift shelters near construction sites with inadequate facilities that are often unsafe and unhygienic.
“The planning department has been tasked with drawing up the draft. The policy seeks to ensure that developers take responsibility for providing safe and decent living conditions for the labourers they hire. This is crucial not only for the welfare of workers but also for public health and urban safety,” a senior Noida Authority official said.
Developers, under the policy, would have to seek the Authority’s permission for setting up labour camps on a separate plot, besides obtaining a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the plot owner.
Recently, several developers submitted proposals to construct temporary shelters for workers, but the requests were denied due to the absence of a formal policy.
A redevelopment policy, recently approved by the Noida Authority’s board, which allows for the reconstruction of buildings older than 30 years, has made safe and hygienic accommodation for workers more urgent, as it may push new infrastructure projects in the city.
