PM MODI'S HISTORIC PROMISE OF JUSTICE, DIGNITY AND ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

The most sweeping labour reforms in independent India have now been realized: the consolidation of 29 archaic labour laws into four comprehensive Labour Codes.

- TARUN CHUGH

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

2025 will be remembered as a watershed year for India's workers. The New Labour Laws enacted this year mark a golden chapter in our nation's journey, bringing dignity and security to those who toil day and night to build India. Empowerment of workers is essential for an empowered, prosperous and Aatmanirbhar India. After decades of neglect, India is witnessing a revolutionary pro-worker transformation under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.

Even after 73 years of Independence, 90% of our work force toiled in the unorganized sector without access to basic social security. For the first time, a government has stepped up to care for all workers-organized or unorganized-and their families.

In the past, the working class was entangled in a web of 29 disparate and often conflicting labour laws. Successive regimes only discussed change but did little to actually help workers; the result was a stagnant system that failed to protect labour rights or encourage job creation. By 2014, both workers and industry were frustrated: the worker wondered why his rights were invisible, while the honest entrepreneur wondered why doing business was so difficult. This indifference ended when Narendra Modi's government charted a different course. He vowed that neither the policy nor the intention would falter and gave India a new work ethic: Reform, Perform, Transform-implement real changes, deliver results, and thereby transform the country. Indeed, the most sweeping labour reforms in independent India have now been realized: the consolidation of 29 archaic labour laws into four comprehensive Labour Codes. This isn't just a merging of statutes on paper-it represents a fundamental reconstruction of India's work culture, geared towards ensuring security, respect, health and welfare for every worker.