Shramyogi Cycle Subsidy Scheme — Gujarat Labour Welfare Board

What is the Shramyogi Cycle Subsidy Scheme?

The Shramyogi Cycle Subsidy Scheme, in Gujarati, the Shramyogi Cycle Subsidy Sahay Yojana, is a transport support scheme of the Gujarat Labour Welfare Board (GLWB), which works under the Labour, Skill Development and Employment Department of the Government of Gujarat. The Board is constituted under the Bombay Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1953, and it funds its schemes from Labour Welfare Fund contributions collected from organised-sector factories and establishments in Gujarat.

The Board states the purpose of this scheme plainly: it is for a worker in the organised sector to travel from home to the place of duty and back. That is the whole idea. A worker in an industrial estate who walks four kilometres each way, or spends Rs 40 a day on shared transport, is spending a meaningful share of a month's wage simply reaching work. A bicycle removes that cost permanently, and the Board contributes Rs 1,500 towards buying one.

The subsidy is small compared with the Board's education and accident schemes, but it is one of the easiest to claim, because the only real evidence needed is a properly made-out purchase bill. According to the Gujarat Labour Welfare Board, the benefit has been available under this scheme since 1 April 2018.

Key features

• Subsidy amount: Rs 1,500 on the purchase of a bicycle.
• Frequency: once only during the entire period of service.
• Cycle condition: new bicycle, chassis not below 22 inches.
• Bill condition: beneficiary's name, dealer's GST number and chassis number all on the bill.
• Deadline: apply within 6 months of the bill date.
• Application route: sanman.gujarat.gov.in.

Who is eligible for the Shramyogi cycle subsidy?

You can claim the subsidy if:

• You are a worker in the organised sector in Gujarat, employed in a factory or establishment covered by the Bombay Labour Welfare Fund Act, 1953.
• Your Labour Welfare Fund contribution is being paid regularly by your employer to the Board.
• You have been in employment for at least the last one year, which is the condition printed in the scheme's detailed terms on the Sanman portal.
• You have bought a new bicycle with a proper bill showing your name, the dealer's GST number and the cycle chassis number, and the chassis is 22 inches or more.
• You apply within 6 months of the date on that bill.

You cannot apply, or will not be eligible, if:

• You have already taken this benefit once during your service. The Board restricts it to one claim in an entire working life.
• The bicycle is second-hand. Assistance is given only on a newly purchased cycle.
• The chassis is smaller than 22 inches, which rules out most children's cycles.
• Your bill is incomplete: missing your name, missing the dealer's GST number or missing the chassis number. The Board states directly that assistance will not be given on a bill with incomplete details.
• More than 6 months have passed since the purchase bill date.
• Your employer does not pay the Labour Welfare Fund, or you work outside the organised sector — in which case the Board's schemes for unorganised workers or the construction workers' board schemes may apply to you instead, but not this one.

Two conditions need care, because the Board's own material states them differently in two places. The detailed scheme conditions say the worker should have been employed for the last one year. The Board's scheme summary elsewhere on the same portal describes the benefit as being for workers whose contribution has been paid regularly for the last three years and adds that the salary must be less than Rs 35,000. Both statements come from official Gujarat Labour Welfare Board pages. Confirm which applies to your case with the Board's helpline or your establishment's welfare officer before you buy.

What documents are required for the cycle subsidy?

The Board's instruction on attachments is that all evidence relating to the application must be uploaded. Scan the bill clearly enough that the chassis number and GST number are readable. An unreadable bill is treated as an incomplete bill.

How to apply for the Shramyogi cycle subsidy online

1. Buy a new bicycle and insist that the dealer writes your name, the shop's GST number and the cycle chassis number on the bill. Check the chassis size is 22 inches or more before you pay.
2. Open sanman.gujarat.gov.in and register as a new citizen user with your Aadhaar number and mobile number, or log in if you already have an account.
3. Choose the Gujarat Labour Welfare Board (GLWB) scheme list and select the Shramyogi Cycle Subsidy Sahay Yojana.
4. Fill in your personal details, your employer's establishment details and the Labour Welfare Fund reference through which your contribution is paid, and your bank account number with IFSC code.
5. Upload the bicycle bill and the supporting documents.
6. Submit within 6 months of the bill date and note down the application number.
7. Track the application on the portal and clear any objection raised, within the 60 days allowed.

How to apply offline

1. Visit the Gujarat Labour Welfare Board office at Shramyogi Kalyan Bhavan, "G" Colony, opposite the water tank, Sukhramnagar, Ahmedabad 380021, or the Board's regional office for your district.
2. Collect and fill the scheme application form and attach photocopies of the bill and the other documents.
3. Submit the form and collect the receipt; Board staff enter the application on the Sanman portal for processing.

Your employer's welfare officer or HR department can usually help with the Labour Welfare Fund reference details, since it is the establishment, not the worker, that deposits the contribution.

How is the Rs 1,500 paid?

The subsidy is a single payment of Rs 1,500 credited to the worker's bank account after the application is sanctioned. It is not linked to the actual price of the cycle beyond the requirement that the purchase be genuine and new, a worker who buys a Rs 4,500 bicycle and one who buys a Rs 9,000 bicycle both receive Rs 1,500. There are no instalments and no annual renewal, because the scheme can be used only once during the whole of a worker's service.

How to check your Sanman application status

1. Open sanman.gujarat.gov.in and use the Application Status option, or log in with your citizen credentials.
2. Enter the application number issued at submission.
3. If an objection is shown, open it and read exactly which document is being asked for before you resubmit.

Why cycle subsidy applications get rejected

• Incomplete bill. The single most common cause. A missing GST number, missing chassis number or a bill made out in someone else's name all stop payment.
• Chassis below 22 inches.
• Second-hand cycle, or a bill that does not establish a new purchase.
• Application filed more than 6 months after the bill date.
• Benefit already taken earlier in the worker's service.
• Labour Welfare Fund not paid regularly by the establishment.
• Objection not cleared in 60 days. The Board's condition is that an application returned under objection and not completed within 60 days is filed away, and that an application resubmitted three times for the same reason without the documents asked for is also filed away.

The practical lesson is to get the bill right at the shop counter. Almost every avoidable rejection under this scheme traces back to a bill written without the chassis number or without the dealer's GST number.

Help and grievance redressal

• Gujarat Labour Welfare Board toll-free helpline: 1800-233-1961, for registration, Labour Welfare Fund payment and scheme benefit queries.
• Board office: Shramyogi Kalyan Bhavan, "G" Colony, opposite the water tank, Sukhramnagar, Ahmedabad 380021, phone 079-22773304, 079-22773305 and 079-22773306.
• Portal: sanman.gujarat.gov.in for filing and status.

The Board records that the final decision on assistance rests with the Welfare Commissioner and that the jurisdiction is Ahmedabad. No fee is payable to apply, and no agent can charge for getting the Rs 1,500 sanctioned.