The lockdown imposed due to Covid-19 has had severe after effects. India faces a steep downfall in the economy, and a surge in unemployment which is at its highest in many years.  To counter this situation several states promulgated ordinances which seek to suspend most of the Labour laws.

 This paper discusses the economic and legal aspects of these ordinances. The government used the pandemic as an opportunity to remove these laws which from the industrialists’ perspective are the most desirable of laws to get away with. This action of the state exhibits its inability to interpret their duty to safeguard the rights of labour, who are the most vulnerable in this pandemic.

This paper discusses the economic aspects of this step, why there was a need to bring these changes, what changes the government brought in and whether or not they are suitable for the situation to be tackled. The articles shows that the objectives these steps seek to achieve would not have the impact as intended.

This paper further discusses the legal aspects of these changes and how they violate the fundamental rights of the labourers. The labour law were brought in after years of struggle and have been removal by a single step of the state. This article argues how DPSPs must be regarded as equally fundamental in interpretation of meaning and content of fundamental rights and enlightens how right to work is deeply ingrained in the right to livelihood thereby right to life.

This article shows precipitous nature of state’s action, which is evidently violating the DPSPs and other fundamental rights of labour. So, it is profoundly recommended that replacement of rights should be implemented rather than removal of rights which would lead to injustice.

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