Latest news with #SLPs
The Star
3 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Rethinking social and labour plans: from compliance to transformational community development
Mzila I. Mthenjane | Published 9 hours ago The consequences of climate change amplify vulnerabilities in communities, placing additional stresses on water availability, agricultural productivity, health outcomes, and infrastructure resilience, such as roads and housing susceptibility to severe weather conditions. Too often, when the disaster or distress hits, communities turn to mining companies to provide services and infrastructure. Despite this reality, there remains a disconnect between intention, impact, and outcomes in these interventions. Mining is on the cusp of a once-in-a-generation investment boom. The global population is approaching 10 billion people, and many parts of the world, including us, are pursuing a net zero economy towards 2050 and beyond. With an estimated $100 billion in additional capital investment in the resources sector required each year to meet the demand outlook associated with urbanisation and the decarbonisation of the global energy system, sizeable increases in material production and infrastructure are also necessary. For emerging economies, there is a narrow window of opportunity to seize now. Such growing demand brings an opportunity to benefit communities, countries and investors committed to enabling and facilitating the mining and investment activities needed to meet our needs, such as skills-to-employment ecosystem, generating local value addition and create revenue flows capable of decarbonized economic development. South Africa's mining sector is a significant driver of economic growth and critical for the socio-economic transformation of our society. Central to this transformation agenda are Social and Labour Plans (SLPs), elements of the mining licensing regime which were introduced through the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 to ensure mining contributes to sustainable community development. SLPs were conceived as strategic tools to promote socio-economic development, stimulate and broaden economic opportunities, and enhance skills development to support the creation of sustainable communities during and after mining. However, nearly two decades after their inception, the question remains: Have SLPs truly driven sustainable, transformative change within mining-affected communities This ongoing struggle reveals a fundamental disconnect between the institutional understanding of challenges within communities and the intended goals and actual community-level outcomes, raising the question of why there is this persistent gap and what are the possible solutions. Despite the significant resources mining companies have committed under SLPs, informed by local integrated development plans (IDPs), tangible and sustained improvements in the quality of life and long-term socio-economic resilience remains elusive. A significant contributing factor is the prevailing and compliance-driven mindset underpinning SLP implementation, amongst mining companies, regulator and beneficiaries. Too often, SLPs, being regulatory obligations, are limited from being approached as strategic investments for genuine socio-economic empowerment and, in today's terms, transforming communities in response to climate change and commence the just transition journey. As it stands, the law ringfences SLPs to individual mining rights, leading to less effective deployment of resources for joint projects which would deliver greater impact and minimise duplications. Such an approach frequently leaves underlying structural challenges unaddressed. For example, projects may initially improve conditions but deteriorate without municipal long-term planning, community stewardship, financial constraints and skills shortages to adequately sustain them. Under such a compliance framework, companies prioritise with local government , short-term deliverables—such as building municipal and district roads, donating to local charities, a clinic here and school classroom there, or sponsoring temporary initiatives—over comprehensive, sustained, and systemic socio-economic transformation projects. This situation ultimately limits the durability and scale of impacts, leading communities to cycle back into dependency and vulnerability. Even though, not directly affected by the SLP, lessons from the decommission of power stations, and associated mine closures in areas like Komati has brought this reality to the fore. Recently mining companies have been trying to pool their SLP projects with amendments to legislation also being advocated. The overarching idea is to bring the benefits of mining to communities through collaboration. But this is not often the case, as some IDPs do not exhibit the essential elements of integration along a clear developmental trajectory -resulting in sub-optimal developmental outcomes, leading to mistrust and finger-pointing. Whereas mining companies correctly complain of the failure of government in creating an enabling environment for development, host communities often bear the brunt of such failures, including poor service delivery and ineffective local economic development. A further complication is the apparent inadequacy of meaningful community engagement during IDP and SLP formulation. Inadequate measurement of actual impacts exacerbates the problem. Without robust metrics to measure true progress—such as improvements in health and education outcomes or enhanced local economic development—SLPs risk remaining exercises in compliance rather than vehicles for genuine and sustained socio-economic development. Furthermore, what is necessary to maximise this developmental impact through increased collaboration not just among mining companies within a municipality, but also with entities in other economic sectors. An appropriate legislative frameworks to guide collaboration between all economic players operating in the same mining region is urgently required. Mining companies, together with other economic players, government, communities and other stakeholders involved can reorient SLPs away from transactional, fragmented efforts towards comprehensive, integrated, and strategic frameworks. By doing so, SLPs can effectively contribute to the fulfilment of the developmental objective by serving as powerful catalysts for inclusive and enduring transformation in the communities that host South Africa's critical mining operations. Mzila I. Mthenjane is PCC Commissioner and CEO, Minerals Council South Africa.
IOL News
4 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Rethinking social and labour plans: from compliance to transformational community development
Too often, when the disaster or distress hits, communities turn to mining companies to provide services and infrastructure. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers. The consequences of climate change amplify vulnerabilities in communities, placing additional stresses on water availability, agricultural productivity, health outcomes, and infrastructure resilience, such as roads and housing susceptibility to severe weather conditions. Too often, when the disaster or distress hits, communities turn to mining companies to provide services and infrastructure. Despite this reality, there remains a disconnect between intention, impact, and outcomes in these interventions. Mining is on the cusp of a once-in-a-generation investment boom. The global population is approaching 10 billion people, and many parts of the world, including us, are pursuing a net zero economy towards 2050 and beyond. With an estimated $100 billion in additional capital investment in the resources sector required each year to meet the demand outlook associated with urbanisation and the decarbonisation of the global energy system, sizeable increases in material production and infrastructure are also necessary. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ For emerging economies, there is a narrow window of opportunity to seize now. Such growing demand brings an opportunity to benefit communities, countries and investors committed to enabling and facilitating the mining and investment activities needed to meet our needs, such as skills-to-employment ecosystem, generating local value addition and create revenue flows capable of decarbonized economic development. South Africa's mining sector is a significant driver of economic growth and critical for the socio-economic transformation of our society. Central to this transformation agenda are Social and Labour Plans (SLPs), elements of the mining licensing regime which were introduced through the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 to ensure mining contributes to sustainable community development. SLPs were conceived as strategic tools to promote socio-economic development, stimulate and broaden economic opportunities, and enhance skills development to support the creation of sustainable communities during and after mining. However, nearly two decades after their inception, the question remains: Have SLPs truly driven sustainable, transformative change within mining-affected communities This ongoing struggle reveals a fundamental disconnect between the institutional understanding of challenges within communities and the intended goals and actual community-level outcomes, raising the question of why there is this persistent gap and what are the possible solutions. Despite the significant resources mining companies have committed under SLPs, informed by local integrated development plans (IDPs), tangible and sustained improvements in the quality of life and long-term socio-economic resilience remains elusive. A significant contributing factor is the prevailing and compliance-driven mindset underpinning SLP implementation, amongst mining companies, regulator and beneficiaries. Too often, SLPs, being regulatory obligations, are limited from being approached as strategic investments for genuine socio-economic empowerment and, in today's terms, transforming communities in response to climate change and commence the just transition journey. As it stands, the law ringfences SLPs to individual mining rights, leading to less effective deployment of resources for joint projects which would deliver greater impact and minimise duplications. Such an approach frequently leaves underlying structural challenges unaddressed. For example, projects may initially improve conditions but deteriorate without municipal long-term planning, community stewardship, financial constraints and skills shortages to adequately sustain them. Under such a compliance framework, companies prioritise with local government , short-term deliverables—such as building municipal and district roads, donating to local charities, a clinic here and school classroom there, or sponsoring temporary initiatives—over comprehensive, sustained, and systemic socio-economic transformation projects. This situation ultimately limits the durability and scale of impacts, leading communities to cycle back into dependency and vulnerability. Even though, not directly affected by the SLP, lessons from the decommission of power stations, and associated mine closures in areas like Komati has brought this reality to the fore. Recently mining companies have been trying to pool their SLP projects with amendments to legislation also being advocated. The overarching idea is to bring the benefits of mining to communities through collaboration. But this is not often the case, as some IDPs do not exhibit the essential elements of integration along a clear developmental trajectory -resulting in sub-optimal developmental outcomes, leading to mistrust and finger-pointing. Whereas mining companies correctly complain of the failure of government in creating an enabling environment for development, host communities often bear the brunt of such failures, including poor service delivery and ineffective local economic development. A further complication is the apparent inadequacy of meaningful community engagement during IDP and SLP formulation. Inadequate measurement of actual impacts exacerbates the problem. Without robust metrics to measure true progress—such as improvements in health and education outcomes or enhanced local economic development—SLPs risk remaining exercises in compliance rather than vehicles for genuine and sustained socio-economic development. Furthermore, what is necessary to maximise this developmental impact through increased collaboration not just among mining companies within a municipality, but also with entities in other economic sectors. An appropriate legislative frameworks to guide collaboration between all economic players operating in the same mining region is urgently required. Mining companies, together with other economic players, government, communities and other stakeholders involved can reorient SLPs away from transactional, fragmented efforts towards comprehensive, integrated, and strategic frameworks. By doing so, SLPs can effectively contribute to the fulfilment of the developmental objective by serving as powerful catalysts for inclusive and enduring transformation in the communities that host South Africa's critical mining operations. Mzila I. Mthenjane is PCC Commissioner and CEO, Minerals Council South Africa. Mzila I. Mthenjane is PCC Commissioner and CEO, Minerals Council South Africa. 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Time of India
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Denied higher pension, retirees' association pleads CJI to intervene
Nagpur: Alleging grave injustice to lakhs of retired persons, Employees Pension (EPS-1995) Coordination Committee has written to Chief Justice of India Bhushan Gavai seeking his intervention after a Supreme Court bench dismissed a key petition filed by Powergrid Retired Employees' Association related to EPS-95. The committee claimed the Supreme Court verdict has denied rightful pension benefits to senior citizens who retired before September 1, 2014. In a letter dated May 20, the committee's national general secretary Prakash Pathak and national legal advisor Dada Tukaram Zode have demanded "sympathetic intervention" from the CJI, citing "arbitrary and unjust treatment" by a Supreme Court bench, which, they alleged, failed to address core grievance regarding misinterpretation of earlier apex court orders. "For the first time since 2004, we are not getting justice from the top court," said Pathak, referring to a decades long legal struggle to secure higher pension based on actual salary. "Till 2016, 10 special leave petitions (SLPs) filed by Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) were rejected. But since 2019, the trend has reversed against the pensioners." The letter points to Kerala high court's 2018 verdict, which held EPFO's pension scheme amendments illegal — a decision later upheld by the apex court in April 2019. However, the committee alleged that subsequent review petitions and SLPs filed by the EPFO and the Centre were processed in an "inconsistent" manner, with fresh benches taking up matters already decided by three-judge benches. The association particularly flagged a paragraph — 44(v) — in the November 4, 2022 judgment by the top court. "The EPFO later misused this paragraph to issue circulars dated December 29, 2022, and January 25, 2023, which effectively excluded pre-2014 retirees from the benefit of higher pension, triggering around 77 subsequent legal applications — all of which were dismissed," said the association. "This pension scheme is meant for social welfare and security in the old age of workers. The court should protect such right to life," the letter reads. It also claims that dismissal of Powergrid staffers plea was done "without considering facts and merits," causing distress to elderly pensioners across the country. The committee has also enclosed a copy of an earlier letter addressed to the apex court, expressing dismay over the verdict. Seeking urgent remedial action, the committee has requested the CJI to examine the case for fairness and consider an appropriate inquiry "in the interest of justice to pensioners across the country."
Hans India
19-05-2025
- Health
- Hans India
The role of speech and language pathologists
Speech and Language Pathologists (SLPs) play a crucial yet often underappreciated role in supporting communication and cognitive development across all age groups. Whether working in hospitals, clinics, schools, or rehabilitation centers, these highly trained professionals are dedicated to helping individuals overcome communication and swallowing challenges that can significantly impact quality of life. SLPs work with a wide range of people—from children with developmental delays and speech sound disorders to adults recovering from strokes, brain injuries, or managing conditions such as Parkinson's disease and dementia. They also support individuals with hearing loss, fluency disorders like stuttering, and voice impairments. In educational settings, SLPs collaborate with teachers and parents to help children develop language skills essential for academic success and social interaction. A large part of their work involves personalised assessment and the development of targeted intervention plans. For children, this may involve improving articulation, expanding vocabulary, or fostering language comprehension. For adults, therapy often focuses on restoring lost communication abilities or learning new strategies for effective speech and language use. SLPs are also critical in addressing swallowing disorders (dysphagia), ensuring that individuals can eat and drink safely—particularly important in healthcare and elderly care settings. Their expertise spans the mechanics of speech production, cognitive-linguistic functions, and even alternative communication methods, such as using devices for those who cannot speak. As communication is a foundational skill for daily living, learning, and connecting with others, the impact of SLPs is profound. They empower individuals to express themselves, build confidence, and engage more fully with the world around them. In doing so, Speech and Language Pathologists not only restore voices—but also rebuild lives.
United News of India
08-05-2025
- Politics
- United News of India
SC tags Partha Chatterjee's bail plea with co-accused in West Bengal's cash-for-jobs scam
New Delhi, May 8 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Wednesday tagged the bail application of former West Bengal minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader, Partha Chatterjee, with a pending matter involving a co-accused in the high-profile multi-crore West Bengal's cash-for-jobs scam, while scheduling the next hearing for July 17. Appearing for Chatterjee, the counsel submitted that the trial had stalled and opposed the separation of his client's proceedings from those of the co-accused. 'He is bedridden and cannot even walk,' the lawyer argued, emphasising Chatterjee's deteriorating health condition. However, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S V Raju strongly opposed the plea, stating, 'He was a minister, this is a serious case. He is neck-deep in corruption. Genuine candidates were denied jobs while only those who paid were recruited.' He further said that a hospital was favouring high-profile accused and that the former minister was medically fit. The bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sanjiv Khanna, questioned the delay in listing the bail matter, asking, 'Why is the bail matter posted for July?' The ASG replied by citing the involvement of multiple co-accused and the gravity of the charges, including misuse of official position and corruption. The court noted that a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by a co-accused against the same Calcutta High Court orders dated November 20 and December 24, 2023, was already scheduled for July 2025. Consequently, the apex court directed that Chatterjee's petition be tagged with the existing matter and heard jointly on July 17, 2025. In a significant procedural directive, the bench also ordered the Chief Secretary of West Bengal to take a decision on sanctioning prosecution against the co-accused within two weeks, emphasising that neither the State nor the co-accused were parties before the Court at this stage. 'We have not expressed any opinion on merits but directed the needful to ensure the facilitation of trial,' the court observed. During the hearing, Justice Khanna expressed concern over inconsistent and verbose rulings in bail matters from the High Courts. 'In bail matters, High Courts are writing lengthy judgments and delivering divergent views? What is happening, Mr Raju?' he questioned. To avoid multiplicity of proceedings, the bench also directed the Supreme Court Registry to tag any future SLPs filed against the same High Court orders with the present case. The cash-for-jobs scam continues to draw national attention due to its political ramifications, with multiple leaders and bureaucrats under investigation for alleged recruitment irregularities in West Bengal's public sector hiring process. UNI SNG SS
