Stipend Scheme for Children of Registered Construction Workers (Punjab BOCW Board)

The Stipend Scheme is one of the education benefits run by the Punjab Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board, the statutory board set up by the Department of Labour, Government of Punjab under the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996. The Board's welfare schemes are approved under Rule 265 of the Punjab Building and Other Construction Workers Rules, 2008, and the stipend is listed as Welfare Scheme No. 3 in the Board's own scheme compendium. Punjabi-speaking readers will often hear it called the BOCW wazifa or labour-card scholarship, but the official name is simply the Stipend Scheme for the Children of Registered Construction Workers.

What does the Punjab BOCW Stipend Scheme pay?

The Punjab BOCW Board pays a yearly stipend that rises with the class or course and is set higher for girls at every level. The rates published by the Board, applicable with effect from 1 April 2016, are:

• Class 1 to class 5 to Rs 3,000 for boys, Rs 4,000 for girls
• Class 6 to class 8 to Rs 5,000 for boys, Rs 7,000 for girls
• Class 9 and class 10 to Rs 10,000 for boys, Rs 13,000 for girls
• Class 11 and class 12 to Rs 20,000 for boys, Rs 25,000 for girls
• College students, all graduation and post-graduation courses, and technical or professional students in ITIs and polytechnics — Rs 25,000 for boys and Rs 30,000 for girls, rising to Rs 40,000 and Rs 45,000 respectively where the student lives in a hostel
• All types of medical and engineering study: Rs 40,000 for boys and Rs 50,000 for girls, rising to Rs 60,000 and Rs 70,000 respectively where the student lives in a hostel

The Board's summary of individual benefit schemes describes the same benefit as a stipend "from Rs. 3,000 to 70,000 per annum (including Hostel fee)" for children of registered construction workers studying from class 1 to degree courses. The amount is an annual payment credited to a bank account, not a fee waiver at the institution, so the family receives the money and pays the institution itself.

Who is eligible for the BOCW stipend in Punjab?

Eligibility runs through the parent's registration, not through the student's income. The conditions the Board publishes are:

• The stipend is given only to the children of workers who are currently registered beneficiaries of the Punjab BOCW Welfare Board.
• The registered worker must have been depositing contribution regularly; the Board applies this condition across its welfare schemes.
• The student must be studying in a recognised class or course covered by the rate table, from class 1 up to medical, engineering, ITI, polytechnic and post-graduate courses.
• A certificate issued by the educational institution must be uploaded on the Board's portal.
• The registered worker may also claim stipend for his own study in evening classes at an approved institute or university.

Registration with the Board is the gateway. Under the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996, a construction worker may register as a beneficiary if he or she is between 18 and 60 years of age and has worked for at least 90 days in construction in the preceding twelve months. Registration, renewal and application-status services for Punjab are available on the Labour Department's e-Labour portal at pblabour.gov.in under "BOCW Registration".

Who cannot apply: a family whose worker has never registered with the Board, or whose membership has lapsed, is not eligible. The scheme has no separate route for unregistered construction labour. A student who has failed the last class is not eligible for that year, because the Board's condition states plainly that stipend shall not be granted in fail cases. Children of workers in trades outside the definition of building and other construction work do not come under this Board at all, and self-employed contractors or employers are not beneficiaries. Importantly, one thing that does not disqualify you is receiving a scholarship elsewhere: the Board's condition 4 says the beneficiary will still be entitled to this stipend even if a similar benefit has been availed from another department or institute of the Punjab Government.

How to apply for the Punjab BOCW stipend

1. Confirm the parent's BOCW registration is live. Open pblabour.gov.in, go to "BOCW Registration", and use "Click here for renewal" if the membership has expired or contribution is pending. An unregistered or lapsed card is the single most common reason stipend claims fail.
2. Collect the education proof. Get a certificate from the school, college, ITI, polytechnic or professional institution stating the student's name, the class or course, and the running session. Add the previous year's result, and a hostel certificate if you are claiming the hostel rate.
3. File the application online. The Board accepts scheme applications on its web portal, submitted either through the Labour Inspector or Labour Enforcement Officer of your area or through the nearest Suvidha Kendra. Take the registration card, Aadhaar, bank passbook and the education documents so they can be uploaded at the counter.
4. Let the sub-divisional committee verify it. As with the Board's other welfare schemes, the application is verified by the committee constituted at sub-divisional level. The concerned officer then obtains approval from the Deputy Commissioner.
5. Receive the money by DBT. After the Deputy Commissioner's approval, the officer sends the sanctioned list to the Board, which transfers the amount directly into the beneficiary's bank account.

How do I check the status of my stipend application?

The e-Labour Punjab portal carries a "Click here to check your application status" link on the BOCW Registration page, and the department's home page carries a separate "Check Your Labour Welfare Board Scheme Status" link. Keep the application or diary number issued at the Suvidha Kendra or by the Labour Inspector, that number, or the registration number on the labour card, is what the status screen asks for. If the online status has not moved for several weeks, the file is usually sitting either with the sub-divisional verification committee or with the Deputy Commissioner's office, and the area Labour Inspector can tell you which.

Why are BOCW stipend applications rejected?

The most common reasons, all traceable to the Board's own conditions, are:

• Registration not current. The worker's beneficiary registration has expired or contribution has not been deposited regularly.
• No institution certificate. The certificate from the educational institute was not uploaded, or does not name the current session.
• Failure in the previous class. The Board does not sanction stipend in fail cases.
• Wrong rate claimed. The hostel rate was claimed without a hostel certificate, or a polytechnic course was claimed at the medical/engineering rate.
• Bank account mismatch. The name, account number or IFSC on the application does not match the passbook, so the DBT transfer bounces even after sanction.

Each of these is fixable. Renew the card, get a fresh certificate on the institution's letterhead, correct the bank details with the Labour Inspector, and resubmit rather than starting a fresh claim from scratch.

What other Board schemes help the same family?

A family that qualifies for the stipend usually qualifies for several other benefits of the same Board, and applying at the same counter saves a trip. The Board's Skill Upgradation and Vocational Education Scheme provides full course fees plus boarding and lodging for wards of construction workers who take training at technical institutions such as ITIs and polytechnics. The Balri Birth Gift Scheme gives Rs 51,000 as a fixed deposit on the birth of a daughter, up to two girls, encashable at her marriage. The Shagun Scheme assists with the marriage of up to two daughters, the Maternity Benefit Scheme pays Rs 21,000 to a female worker and Rs 5,000 to a male worker per child up to two children, and the Board's pension scheme pays Rs 2,000 a month after 60 years of age with three years of membership. The Mentally Retarded Children Benefit Scheme, as the Board titles it, provides Rs 20,000 a year for the care of a differently abled child of a registered worker.

Key dates and grievance route

The Board has not published a fixed last date for stipend applications, so the practical deadline is the academic session itself: apply once the institution can certify that the student is enrolled for the current year, and do not let a session close without filing. Where a claim is rejected, the Board's scheme rules place the appellate power with the Secretary of the Board. The pension scheme, for example, allows an appeal to the Secretary within 60 days of rejection by the committee under the Deputy Commissioner, with a delay of up to one year condonable for satisfactory reasons. For questions, the Labour Department's helpline numbers are 0172-2920755 and 0172-2925755, working Monday to Friday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and the technical helpdesk email is elabourhelpdesk@gmail.com. The Board's head office is at Labour Bhawan, Model Welfare Centre, Phase 10, Sector 64, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (Mohali), Punjab 160062.