Marriage Assistance for Construction Workers (Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu)

What is the marriage assistance for construction workers?

Marriage Assistance is a welfare scheme of the Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, run by the Labour and Employment Department of the UT Administration from Silvassa. The Board lists it as Form VIII in its Dadra and Nagar Haveli scheme series; the Daman and Diu pages of the same Board carry the identical benefit table under Form XI.

According to the Board's scheme page, the Board may sanction financial assistance for the marriage of self and for children, up to 2 children, of building workers. The purpose is practical: a wedding is the single largest cash outgo a construction worker's household faces, and it is what most often pushes a family into debt with informal moneylenders.

How much marriage assistance is paid?

The same table appears on the Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu pages of the Board's website, so the rates are uniform across all three districts of the union territory. A registered woman worker who also marries off two daughters could in principle draw Rs 51,000 three times over the life of her membership, subject to the Board's satisfaction on each claim.

Who is eligible for marriage assistance?

You can claim if:

• You are registered as a beneficiary of the BOCW Welfare Fund in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman or Diu.
• You have not less than six months of membership with the fund.
• You were aged 18 to 60 and had worked in building or other construction work for not less than 90 days in the preceding 12 months when you registered.
• The marriage is your own, or that of one of your first two children.
• Both the bride and groom are of legal marriageable age.

You cannot apply if:

• You are not a registered beneficiary of the Board; registration is the gateway to every BOCW welfare scheme.
• Your membership is under six months old.
• You are claiming for a third or later child.
• Your membership has lapsed for non-payment of subscription and has not been revived.
• You are availing benefits under the ESIC Act, 1948 or the EPF and MP Act, 1952. The Board has clarified that such workers are not entitled to receive similar benefits admissible under the welfare schemes framed under the BOCW (RE and CS) Act, 1996.

What documents are required?

The Board's application forms in this series consistently ask for the applicant's Aadhaar number, mobile number, temporary and permanent address, the date and amount of the first and last subscription, and full bank details, so keep those ready as well.

How to apply for marriage assistance

1. Check that six months of membership are complete and that your subscription is current. The office verifies this before anything else.
2. Collect the marriage documents, the marriage certificate if the wedding has taken place, or the invitation card with the fixed date if it has not, plus age proof for the bride and groom, and relationship proof if the claim is for a son or daughter.
3. Collect the prescribed form: Form VIII in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Form XI in Daman and Diu; from your district labour office, or open the "Marriage Assistance" page on bocwddd.in.
4. Fill in the form completely, quoting your BOCW registration location and number, personal and address details, subscription history, the details of the marriage being claimed for, and your bank account number, bank name, branch and IFSC code.
5. Submit the form to the Member Secretary (BOCWWB) through your district labour office, attaching all supporting documents, and take an acknowledgement.
6. Follow up with the office for the sanction. The amount is credited to the bank account given on the form.

How to register as a construction worker

1. Confirm you are aged 18 to 60 and have been engaged in building or other construction work for not less than 90 days in the preceding twelve months.
2. Apply in the prescribed registration form to the officer authorised by the Board in your district, with the prescribed documents.
3. Pay the registration fee, which under the BOCW Act is not more than Rs 50.
4. Keep the subscription current and wait for six months of membership before filing a marriage claim.

How to check your application status

There is no online claim tracker on bocwddd.in. Follow up in person or by phone at the district labour office where the form was filed, quoting your BOCW registration number, the date of submission and the file number. Marriage claims are commonly filed close to the wedding date, so tell the office the date of the marriage when you submit — it helps them prioritise the file.

Why marriage assistance claims get rejected

• Membership under six months, the most common early rejection.
• A claim for a third child, which falls outside the two-child limit.
• No marriage proof. Neither a certificate nor an invitation card with the date means there is nothing to verify.
• Age proof missing for the bride or groom.
• Relationship not established between the registered worker and the bride or groom in a child's marriage.
• Lapsed subscription without a recorded revival.
• Wrong or mismatched bank details, which hold up the credit after sanction.
• Overlap with ESIC or EPF benefits, expressly excluded by the Board.

What else a registered worker can claim

Marriage assistance is one of ten welfare schemes the Board lists for Dadra and Nagar Haveli, running from Form II to Form XI. A worker whose child is marrying this year may well be eligible for others at the same time, and it is worth asking the labour office about all of them in one visit:

• Financial assistance for education; Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 a month by class, plus tuition and hostel fee reimbursement at graduation level, for up to two children.
• Construction of a residential house, a token amount not exceeding Rs 75,000 on your own land, after one year of membership.
• Grant for purchase of tools and protective gear; up to Rs 10,000 once in three years, after six months of membership.
• Pension; Rs 3,000 a month after 60, for members of at least ten years.
• Maternity benefit, Rs 40,000 per delivery for a registered female member and Rs 30,000 for a registered male member, for up to two deliveries.

Daman and Diu additionally list skill development and financial assistance for surgery among their scheme forms. Every one of these rests on the same registration, which is why keeping the subscription alive matters far more than any single claim.

Where to get help or complain

• Dadra and Nagar Haveli: BOCW Welfare Board, Old Circuit House Building, opposite Bal Bhawan, Silvassa 396230. Phone 0260-2642374, email labour-dnh@nic.in
• Daman: Vidhyut Bhavan, Kachigam, Daman 396215. Phone 0260-2261059, email lelidaman@gmail.com
• Diu: Labour and Employment Office, Collectorate, Diu 362520. Phone 02875-252444

The Board's website carries a feedback form and a Right to Information page for written grievances. Filing a marriage assistance claim costs nothing, and no agent or middleman is authorised to charge a commission for securing a sanction.