UDF govt. order extending accreditation period of Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society till July 31 sparks debate

A United Democratic Front (UDF) government decision to extend the validity of the accreditation period of agencies picked for executing public works in Kerala, which includes the Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society (ULCCS), till July 31, 2026 has raised eyebrows.

When in the Opposition, senior UDF leaders, including the present Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan and All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary K.C. Venugopal, had staunchly criticised the alleged unfair patronage extended to ULCCS by the then Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)]-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government.

In September 2022, the LDF which was in power then had extended the term of 46 agencies, including the ULCCS, up to May 31, 2026, with a rider that further renewal will be subject to a review of their performance. After the term expired in May, a June 27, 2026, order issued by the Finance department under the UDF dispensation said that the government had examined the matter “in detail” and was extending the period up to July 31 “with retrospective effect.”

On June 29, to questions from members in the just-concluded Assembly session whether works awarded to the ULCCS “without following procedures” had led to low-quality output and corruption, P.K. Basheer, Public Works Minister in the UDF government, had replied in the negative. In a written reply, Mr. Basheer said it has not come to the notice of the government that works were awarded to the cooperative in violation of norms. Quality checks were stringently monitored in all works undertaken by his department, he had further added.

Mr. Basheer could not be reached for comment on the two-month extension.

Mr. Venugopal had criticised the CPI(M)’s alleged links to the labour cooperative during the UDF’s Assembly election campaign earlier this year. As Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Satheesan had at a meet-the-press programme in June 2023 alleged that the LDF government was awarding all major works to the ULCCS, bypassing procedures and tendering norms.

One of the oldest labour cooperatives in the country, the ULCCS is one of the six ‘accredited non-governmental agencies’ on the government’s list.