LAHORE, Dec 13: Senior Minister Raja Riaz Ahmad has said the Punjab government is spending Rs100 million on projects for workers’ welfare and elimination of child labour.

Talking to a delegation of workers here on Saturday, the minister said the welfare of workers was on the priority agenda of the Punjab government because 70 per cent of 427,484 industrial units in the country were located in the province and were contributing 25.7 per cent to its economy.

He said the government had also launched a plan for the elimination of bonded labour in the brick kiln sector and had allocated Rs20 million for its implementation.

The provincial government, he said, was making efforts for the elimination of child labour by creating awareness about its evils and educating the employers about social accountability standards, occupational health and safety and improvement in management standards through the Centre for Improvement of Working Conditions and Environment.

Mr Ahmad said the provincial government had also started the scheme for the introduction of 3,000 ergonomic looms for weavers in Hafizabad, Nankana Sahib, Faisalabad, Toba Tek Singh, Jhang, Multan, Vehari, Kasur and Narowal.

Studies are under way on global standards, trade regimes and occupational diseases for upgrading health facilities and legal and institutional framework. Professional in put is being sought for resolving issues in the labour sector issues.

He said the government was ensuring protection of rights and welfare of workers by promoting healthy labour-management relations besides maintaining a network of workers welfare hospitals and schools for the children of workers.

A number of residential colonies had also been developed for providing residential facilities to industrial workers, he said.