Under its employment incentive scheme ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat Rojgar Yojana’ (ABRY), the Central government has disbursed over Rs 10,000 crores to more than 60 lakh beneficiaries through 1.52 lakh establishments, Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Rameshwar Teli told Rajya Sabha on Thursday.

The initiative was launched in October 2020 to incentivise employers to create new employment and restoration of loss of employment during Covid-19. As of December 05, an amount of Rs.10,043.02 crore has been disbursed to 60.49 lakh beneficiaries. The scheme ensures the disbursements of benefits to specific eligibility criteria, met by beneficiary establishments and employees on a month-to-month basis.

States like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh have the maximum number of beneficiaries and establishments. Notably, the scheme provides benefits in 194 different sectors like agriculture farms, automobile services, canteens, general insurance, marble mines, hospitals, and cattle feed industry among others.

What is Aatmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana (ABRY)?

The scheme is designed to stimulate the creation of new job opportunities by extending financial support to employers of establishments registered with the Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO).

The crux of the scheme lies in incentivising employment of unemployed individuals, including those who lost their jobs due to Covid-19, by covering both the employee and employer contributions (24% of wages) for establishments with up to 1,000 employees. For establishments with over 1,000 employees, only the employee’s EPF contributions (12% of wages) are covered in respect of new employees.

In August 2023, the government announced that ABRY has exceeded its initial employment generation goals, showcasing its success in fostering job creation and recovery during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The scheme, which remained open for registrations until March 31, 2022, had set a target to benefit approximately 7.18 million employees across India. As of July 31, 2023, the scheme has already achieved an enrolment of over 7.58 million new employees, surpassing its initial employment generation target.

As of August 2023, a total of 1,52,380 establishments, employing 60,44,155 new employees and upon fulfilling all the eligibility conditions, have availed benefits amounting to a sum of Rs. 9,669.87 crore under the scheme.