The Ministry of Labour & Employment conducted District-Level Capacity Building and Awareness Programmes on October 1, 2026, as part of its nationwide "Shram Samvad" initiative. The programs were held simultaneously in three industrial clusters: Haridwar (Uttarakhand), Naraina Industrial Area (New Delhi), and Sonipat (Haryana), with total participation of approximately 275 stakeholders including government officials, industry associations, employers, HR and legal professionals.
The Haridwar program, organized in partnership with SCOPE at the BHEL Admin Building, attracted around 125 participants from industry associations, business establishments, employers, industrialists, and officials from EPFO, ESIC, and the Central Labour Commissioner's office. Shri Govind Ram, Deputy Secretary of the Ministry, provided an overview of the four Labour Codes and basic employer compliance requirements including establishment parameters, workforce thresholds, and principal compliance areas.
In Naraina Industrial Area, the program was organized in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Naraina Industries Association, with approximately 80 participants representing employers, industry professionals, and HR/legal/finance stakeholders. Shri Ashok Kumar Singh, IAS, Director General of ESIC, delivered the keynote address emphasizing the importance of stakeholder awareness and compliance readiness.
The Sonipat program, organized with Laghu Udyog Bharati at Wyndham Garden, saw participation of around 70 stakeholders including employers and state authorities. Shri P.B. Verma, Additional Central Provident Fund Commissioner of EPFO, delivered the inaugural address, while Shri Minhaz Ahmed, Director of the Ministry, provided an overview of the new Labour Codes.
Technical sessions across all three venues covered the four Labour Codes: Code on Wages, 2019; Industrial Relations Code, 2020; Code on Social Security, 2020; and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020. Dedicated sessions were also conducted on Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana (PMVBRY) and Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PM-SYM) schemes. The programs featured interactive Question-and-Answer sessions allowing participants to raise practical issues concerning applicability, statutory compliance, records and returns, and employee benefits directly with Ministry officials.
The Shram Samvad campaign, launched nationwide on September 28, 2026, is a 90-day outreach initiative targeting 316 districts across all 36 States and Union Territories, with specific focus on industrial clusters to facilitate effective implementation of the new labour framework at ground level.