New Delhi: In a significant move, the central government on Tuesday announced to extend the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) to construction and building workers. The move is expected to benefit nearly 2.6 crore people of the country.

Speaking to media persons here on Tuesday, Oscar Fernandes, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, said, “The benefits under the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana are being extended to construction and building workers.” 

The health scheme was approved in October 2007 and was implemented in April this year. As per the original scheme, 75% of the premium is paid by the central government while the remaining is borne out by the state government. However, in the case of J & K and Northeastern states, the ratio is 90:10.

“For construction workers, the target is to cover 2.6 crore workers and the premium would be paid out of the cess collected from construction activities in the states,” added Fernandes.

He said that a worker needs to pay Rs 30 as registration fee for issuance of smart cards. The Minister also disclosed the fact that more than 3.35 lakh smart cards providing health insurance cover to 16.7 lakh BPL families have been issued.