Why in the News
The Ministry of Labour and Employment's announcement of 24 October 2026: a two-day state-level 'Shram Samvad' programme will be held in Lucknow on 26-27 October with the cooperation of the Uttar Pradesh government. Themes - the labour codes, worker welfare and social security. This is a notice of an upcoming event, not a report of a completed one.
Outline of the Shram Samvad Campaign
- A campaign of information on labour reforms and capacity building (preparing officers, employers and parties to understand and apply the rules).
- A 90-day campaign starting 28 September 2026: district-level dialogues in 316 districts of all 36 states/Union Territories; areas with industrial clusters under special focus.
Agenda of the Two Days
- Day one: labour reforms, international labour mobility, social security for unorganised and gig/platform workers, and construction-worker initiatives. (Gig work = income on the basis of a specific task/service; platform work is tied to a digital platform.)
- Digital platforms: discussion announced on e-Shram, the Shram Suvidha portal, Samadhan and Labour Stack; the usefulness of technology will have to be assessed separately from real service reach.
- Day two: the legal compliance requirements of the four labour codes (fulfilling the conditions of the law in force), major schemes, and prevention-rescue-rehabilitation of child labour. Both days also include open discussion of industry's practical doubts.
The Four Labour Codes
- Code on Wages, 2019
- Industrial Relations Code, 2020
- Code on Social Security, 2020
- Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
Limitation
No conclusion about any new legally effective date, or uniform implementation across all states, follows from this announcement.
Read the detailed analysis: Shram Samvad, Lucknow - full analysis.
Prelims Practice Questions
Question 1. Consider the following statements about the Shram Samvad campaign:
Statement 1: It is a 90-day dialogue campaign.
Statement 2: District-level dialogues are being held in 316 districts under it.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer and Explanation
Answer: (c) Both 1 and 2. The 24 October release states both; the campaign began on 28 September.
Question 2. Which of the following labour codes is of the year 2019?
(a) Industrial Relations Code
(b) Code on Social Security
(c) Code on Wages
(d) Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code
Answer and Explanation
Answer: (c) Code on Wages. The event release gives the Code on Wages as 2019 and the other three as 2020.
Source
Official release of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, 24 October 2026.
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