New Delhi, Jul 4 (IANS): With the world maintaining social distancing and facing financial turbulence and economic de-growth amid the coronavirus pandemic, some students have brought hope to the workers, especially those who lost their livelihoods during the Covid-19-induced lockdown and the subsequent disruptions, and have rolled out a promising digital service to help them find relevant jobs and employment.
Akshat Mittal (17), who solved the odd-even problem for Delhiites through his innovative carpool app, odd-even.com, in 2016 has set up a website -- Bharatshramik.in -- to link unemployed workers with prospective employers.
"I was touched by the news of migrant workers starving and dying due to hunger. While there are jobs and unemployed workers, there is no mechanism to link them together. Bharat Shramik is trying to fill that gap and provide a platform of hope and livelihood," said Akshat.
During the lockdown, he started working on the design of this platform and took the help of his friends Atipriya Dev Sinha, Ashish Agarwal and Mihir Soni to give shape to the novel idea.
''The lockdown has been hard on everyone, though it has been very harsh on the poor. I felt quite helpless sitting at home, enjoying the sense of security I have when lakhs of workers were struggling to get even one meal a day. So when Akshat offered me an opportunity to work with him to help these workers get gainful employment, it did not take me a second to say 'yes'. Now, I am heading Operations and Marketing along with him. We both are dedicated to this cause and are determined to bring a change in this gloomy environment," Atipriya told IANS.
Bharat Shramik uses matchmaking technology to help unemployed workers, especially blue-collar workers, who migrated closer to their homes to find jobs.
On Bharat Shramik, workers can register by calling the helpline number +91 8822 022 022, and the employers can find suitable workers in their area by registering on www.bharatshramik.in. The helpline is powered by Knowlarity, a leading communication solution provider.
The multi-lingual helpline number involves a simple three-step process. The workers start off by selecting their language, then, click the job they want to work in, and proceed to type in the pin code of the area where they want to find work.
This data is stored on a database and presented to suitable employers through the web portal. More than 18,000 workers and big employers have already registered at the website which is gaining traction at a fast pace.
''We aim to register one million workers on this platform in months to come, as it can be useful in providing meaningful employment during the pandemic. If you are also an employer who lost a chunk of your workforce and are unable to reopen your business, please register at www.bharatshramik.in. If you are an NGO working with migrant workers, you can get them registered through the helpline number in order to increase their chances of getting employed," Akshat added.
Akshat and his friends have approached social organisations to inform migrant workers about this platform and its features. Many workers from Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa have already registered. For the convenience of the workers, he said, the content is displayed in 10 Indian languages.
"We are getting calls and inquiries from workers from every part of the country and employers as well. Both need each other and this website is offering a promising service at this platform," Atipriya said.
Bharat Shramik plans to plot a new skill map of India where the number of unemployed migrant workers with their skills can be mapped to districts and states. This will help the government in rolling out more focused schemes (like PM Garib Rozgar Yojana) and programmes to boost the economy, he added.