After a blanket ban on new registrations and renewals under a Social Security Act, affecting hundreds of thousands of construction workers in the state, the Building and Construction Workers Welfare Board wrote a letter to the election commission on Thursday, requesting permission for the resumption of services for certain aspects of this Act.

Abdul Gaffar, 45, has been a construction labourer in the city for the last 20 years. Until last year, he had no idea about the Building and Construction Workers Act of 1996, which extends several social security benefits to individuals like him, including healthcare and safety kits.