Allow companies to issue ID cards for workers in essential services, says T.N. Chamber of Commerce and Industry

The process of receiving identity cards for employees is difficult, says senior president S. Rethinavelu

Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry senior president S. Rethinavelu.

The process of receiving identity cards for employees of companies working in essential services from the Police and the District Supply Offices is difficult, according to Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry senior president S. Rethinavelu.

Speaking to

The Hindu , he said that employees from sectors, including rice mills, were being stopped on their way to work by the Police. “The Tamil Nadu government has made provisions to ensure that employees in industries considered as ‘essential services’, should be allowed to get to their workplace to ensure smooth functioning during the lockdown. With permission becoming increasingly difficult to procure, it creates a sense of inspector raj,” he said.

In a letter to Principal Secretary of Agriculture, Gagandeep Singh Bedi, Mr. Rethinavelu said that since it was an uphill task, companies themselves must be allowed to issue these identity cards furnishing details of the establishment’s Goods and Service Tax identification number or its Food Safety and Standards Authority of India number. Alongside this, the employee’s Aadhaar card number and picture could be on display too, he said.

The list of employees to each of these companies could be forwarded to the district-level labour department via email. Officials could choose to verify all these employees eventually, he said. He added that to work through the lockdown, adjustments must be made to accommodate workers.