Defence minister Rajnath Singh has approved a proposal to provide insurance cover to tens of thousands of casual workers employed by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to build infrastructure in the country’s farthest frontiers.

“This scheme will provide ₹10 lakh as insurance in any kind of death to the family of casual paid labourers,” the defence ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

The latest welfare measure comes months after the ministry rolled out a new policy in September 2023 for BRO’s casual workers to give them dignity in case of death. Singh had then approved the policy for the preservation and transportation of the mortal remains of casual paid labourers to their native place while also raising funeral expenses from ₹1,000 to ₹10,000 for those whose last rites are performed at the worksite.

These moves by the ministry have brought into focus the risky roles these workers fill in treacherous terrain.

“Keeping in view the severe risk posed to the lives of casual paid labourers posted in hazardous worksites, inclement weather, inhospitable terrain and occupational health hazards, and considering the deaths occurred/reported during their engagement, the provision of insurance coverage on humanitarian grounds will prove to be a great morale booster,” the statement said.

BRO employs up to one lakh casual workers to build border infrastructure in areas stretching from Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim to Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. These projects include roads, bridges, tunnels, airfields and helipads.

The insurance scheme will serve as a social security and welfare measure and will go a long way in securing the livelihoods of their families, it added.

Welfare measures in place from these workers in forward areas include portable cabins, prefabricated shelters, bio toilets, snow tents with polyurethane insulation panels, special winter clothing and rations for high altitude, healthcare facilities, training in emergency medical management and make-shift schools for their children.

The 1,800 special guests, among the 25,000 people who attended the 77th Independence Day celebrations at Red Fort last year, included 50 BRO workers, again a recognition of their role.

India’s infrastructure push in forward areas, a firm and focussed response to China’s thrust on developing its border areas, has supported the military’s pursuit of robust deterrence against the neighbour with whom the country has been locked in a standoff in eastern Ladakh since May 2020.

The military’s readiness, among other things, depends on infrastructure in forward areas, a landscape dotted with towering mountains, valleys and rivers.

BRO has completed around 300 crucial projects during the last three years at a cost of ₹8,000 crore. India lags China in border infrastructure but the country is catching up fast on the back of speedy execution of strategic projects to support military operations, increased spending, and focussed adoption of technology and techniques to fill gaps that came into focus after the standoff with China began.

BRO’s funding has increased over the years to enable faster development of infrastructure. Its expenditure, which ranged from ₹3,305 crore per year to ₹4,670 crore per year during 2008-17, has climbed steadily in recent years and is projected to be around ₹15,000 crore in 2023-24, according to government data. The expenditure stood at ₹12,340 crore in 2022-23, ₹9,375 crore in 2021-22, ₹8,763 crore in 2020-21 and ₹7,737 crore in 2019-20.