Mansukh Mandaviya calls for unified employment data system

Union minister Mansukh Mandaviya stressed on Tuesday the need for a mechanism to have complete data on citizens going abroad for jobs and studies, the ministry of labour and employment said in a statement.

The Union minister of labour and employment and youth affairs and sports, who chaired a high-level meeting on the issues related to employment data and overseas emigration, along with Union minister of state for labour and employment Shobha Karandlaje, also suggested an integration of the National Career Service (NCS), MYBharat, MADAD, eMigrate, eShram and state portals.

He further emphasised that industry associations can play a pivotal role in collating the employment data, the statement said. 

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The minister underscored the role of NITI Aayog as an umbrella organization that can facilitate the compilation of employment-related data from various ministries," the statement added.

"It was emphasised that contracts with foreign employers should be standardized and the migration and mobility partnership arrangements (MMPA) and social security agreements (SSA) should be reviewed to get feedback on the efficacy of its provisions," the statement said.

NITI Aayog officials shared insights from various studies on employment portals in the country, emphasising the need for a unified platform to integrate employment data across government schemes and sectors.

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“The meeting underscored the government's commitment to bridging current data gaps, especially in the informal sector, and to developing a comprehensive, multi-sector employment data portal to drive policy and job creation initiatives,” the statement said.

“The meeting concluded with a strong commitment to strengthening employment data coordination, expanding overseas job opportunities, and security of Indian workers abroad. The proposed unified employment data portal will serve as a transformative tool in centralizing employment data, while the eMigrate and NCS integration will broaden access to international job markets,” it added.

The government hopes to improve data governance and management by utilizing sectoral databases, including those developed under the Digital India mission, using advanced technological tools to streamline and optimize data and statistics handling.  

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The Centre also plans to digitize land records in urban areas with GIS mapping.

Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her budget speech in July, pointed out the government's efforts to improve data collection and quality.

"For improving data governance, collection, processing and management of data and statistics, different sectoral databases including those established under the Digital India mission, will be utilized with active use of technology tools," she said.