 Scheme on March 5 2019 to extend facilities to them when they become older and unable to work anymore.){kind=link}
More than 50 per cent of Meghalaya’s population belong to BPL (Below Poverty Line) category and live from hand to mouth on a daily basis. With the small income that they earn they have to feed their family and educate their children besides meeting other miscellaneous expenses. At the end of the day hardly anything is left. As long as they are strong and healthy they can manage to survive and so need not worry at all. But if they fall sick they cannot carry on with their routine and so they are confined to their homes and sometimes bed-ridden in case of severe affliction. Deprived of income, worries and tension may lead to despair. Even if this section of people is healthy they may face problems at times when they do not get any gainful employment at all or what will be their future when they become old and unable to do any work with no one to help and look after them. Unlike those who are employed in the organised sector and assured of a pension and security in old age, those in the unorganised sector face a dark future.
Fully aware of the plight of workers in the unorganised sector, the central government launched the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PM-SYM) Scheme on March 5 2019 to extend facilities to them when they become older and unable to work anymore. PM-SYM Yojana is a pension scheme which covers  unorganised sector workers numbering about 42 crore in the country. Taking advantage of the scheme, beneficiaries are assured of economic and social security once they are old. This sector comprises mostly of domestic workers, home-based workers, agriculturists, landless labourers, taxi and bus as well as vehicle drivers along with their helpers, street vendors, head loaders, brick kiln workers, cobblers, washer men and women, construction workers, ragpickers, handloom workers, leather workers, audio-visual workers and those involved in similar other occupations. This scheme is active in all states and Union Territories.
Unorganised sector workers whose monthly income is Rs 15,000 per month or less are eligible for the scheme. They should have a savings bank account and Aadhaar number. Minimum age for joining the scheme is 18 years and maximum is 40 years. It is a voluntary and contribution-based scheme. Subscribers are assured of a monthly pension of Rs 300 from the age of 60 years onwards. Contribution required of a subscriber ranges from Rs 55 to Rs 200 per month depending on age of entry. Central government will give a matching contribution towards the beneficiary’s pension account. If a subscriber dies, the spouse will be entitled to receive 50 percent of the pension amount. Exit by subscriber is allowed at any time and beneficiary will get back the money as per provisions of the scheme, PM-SYM is a central sector scheme under Ministry of Labour and Employment and implemented through Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and Community Service Centres (CSCs). By the end of the year 2020, about 45,000 have enrolled through 3,52,598 CSCs across India.