Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
89% MGNREGA wages paid within 15 days: Govt
May 17, 2017 10:36 PM IST | Source: PTI
Timely payment of wages under Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
(MGNREGA) has been a major concern for the
government from some time.
The government today said it has paid 89 per cent of
wages to workers under the MGNREGA scheme
within 15 days of the work done.
Timely payment of wages under Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
(MGNREGA) has been a major concern for the
government from some time.
Union Rural Development Ministry in partnership with
the state government has been trying to ensure timely
payment of wages to the MGNREGA workers.
"In the current financial year, 20.88 crore person days
of work has been generated so far. 89.08 percent of
wage payments have been made within 15 days of
work done," Rural Development Ministry said in a
statement.
22 states including Puducherry received wage payment
directly through National Electronic Fund
Management System.
MGNREGS UPDATE News for Internal Circulation No. 67/ May 16, 2017 – May 31, 2017 Foundation for Ecological Security
Inside News
• First month of new fiscal sees sharp rise in MGNREGS payout
• States asked to complete NREGA FY17 audit by September
• Bid to reduce gap between MGNREGA, state wages
• Jammu gets lion’s share under MNREGA • Glitch in govt. transfers delays Rs.3045 cr in
NREGA wages • Modi government generated 813 crore man-days
of rural work in 3 years: Tomar • 1 L Dovas geo-tagged for scrutiny in J’khand • Odisha govt takes MGNREGS route to build
Anganwadis • Clear MGNREGS wagearrears, Centre urged
Articles
• Few takers for rural job scheme • Three years of Modi: Rural jobs rise as 8.13 bn
person-days of work created • MNREGA: Priority given to water conservation
Government Order
• Violation of the Provisions of the Aadhaar Act, 2016 and Information Technology Act, 2000.
• Review cum Orientation Meeting of BFT program.
• Nomination to Participate in SAKSHAM launch on 19th June 17, Vigyan Bhawan
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
The Centre along with states is working on the direct
transfer of wages into the bank accounts of the
workers.
Over 85 percent of active MGNREGA workers have
their Aadhaar details seeded with their consent and
4.85 crores workers are already on the Aadhaar
payment bridge linked Bank accounts, it added.
The thrust of the MGNREGA is on water conservation
and states have adopted mission water conservation
guidelines to focus on 2,264 water stressed and
irrigation deficient blocks of the country.
Emphasising on the asset creation, the ministry is
making all efforts to create durable assets and provide
employment on demand.
http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/89-
mgnrega-wages-paid-within-15-days-govt-2282201.html
First month of new fiscal sees sharp rise in
MGNREGS payout
TNN | May 18, 2017, 04.48 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Timely wage payments under the rural
job guarantee scheme have clocked a sharp rise in the
first month of the financial year, raising hopes of
checking a major malaise that has been plaguing the
flagship employment programme.
As per figures released by the rural development
ministry, 89.08% of wage payments have been made
within 15 days of the work done in 2017. The
MGNREGA law stipulates that payments to workers
be made within a fortnight of work done and every
day's delay attracts penalty to be paid as compensation.
The delay has been high over the years, with just
around 43% of timely payments registered in 2016, a
senior official said.
In contrast, 89.08% of wage payments have been made
in 2017, which means April and the first fortnight of
May during which 20.88 crore person days of work
has been generated.
The Centre is keeping an alert eye on the closure of
muster rolls following completion of work under the
job scheme - the time when the financial orders are
raised. The ministry has been reminding the states
about the completion of muster rolls and nudging them
about payments.
Officials claimed the delay has also been on account of
failure of states to submit the audits and the financial
statements on time. In such cases, the RD ministry has
told the states that they should make payments against
which the Centre will release the money as soon as
their financial documents are submitted.
The RD ministry is hopeful of maintaining a high rate
of timely payments, with forecast of a timely and good
monsoon likely to ease the pressure on the scheme.
MGNREGA registers high demand of work in times of
delayed monsoon or drought. "The ministry is
continuously striving in partnership with states to
ensure timely payment of wages to MGNREGA
workers directly into their Aadhar linked bank
accounts," the official statement said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/first-month-of-new-fiscal-
sees-sharp-rise-in-mgnregs-payout/articleshow/58725640.cms
States asked to complete NREGA FY17 audit by
September
By Ruchika Chitravanshi
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
NEW DELHI: The Centre has asked all states to finish
the financial audit of the Mahatma Gandhi National
Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS)
for 2016-17 by September this year so that the
remaining amount allocated to the scheme can be
released early.
(For the current fiscal, the government had disbursed
Rs 23,443 crore, or half of the 2017-18 budget
allocation for MGNREGS, to the states in April.)
Delay in the financial audit of MGNREGS, the
government’s flagship rural job guarantee scheme, is
the key reason why several states have not been getting
funds under the scheme on time. For instance, the
Centre could transfer funds for 2016-17 to Bihar only
in March this year because the state provided the audit
report late.
For the current fiscal, the government had disbursed
Rs 23,443 crore, or half of the 2017-18 budget
allocation for MGNREGS, to the states in April.
However, the remaining amount cannot be released till
the scheme’s audit reports are in.
“We cannot transfer funds beyond 50% of the budget
without receiving a financial statement of the previous
year. By giving funds in advance we can ensure timely
payments, which is our top priority for MGNREGS
this year,” a senior official told ET.
The rural development ministry has also explained this
constraint to the Supreme Court, which had pulled up
the Centre last year for not providing timely wages to
the poor under NREGS. Two successive years of
drought had added to the woes of those who had not
received pay under MGNREGS.
According to government data, in the current financial
year, 20.9 crore person days of work have been
generated so far and 89% of wage payments have been
made within 15 days of work done, as mandated by the
Act (MGNREGA) governing the scheme. In 2016-17,
only 47% of the total payments were made within the
stipulated 15 days.
The ministry has also drawn up alist of states
accounting for maximum transactions and delays so as
to sharpen its focus on timely payments. Nearly 95%
of the transactions are done by 17 states. Tamil Nadu,
which draws 20% of MGNREGS funds, the maximum
among all states, reported delays in more than 90%
payments during the financial year.
The government has also ordered an evaluation of over
80 lakh hectare of water conservation work done under
MGNREGA in 2015-17. The exercise is being
undertaken by the Institute of Economic Growth and
the final report would be available by September 30,
2017. “It will help us undertake any mid-course
correction if required. The study will also spot lagging
states and guide us about the technical specifications
and if they need to be changed,” the official cited
earlier said.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/states-
asked-to-complete-nrega-fy17-audit-by-
september/articleshow/58756560.cms
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
Bid to reduce gap between MGNREGA, state
wages
By Ruchika ChitravanshiET Bureau | Updated: May
23, 2017, 01.01 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Faced with criticism over the meagre
hike in wages for its flagship rural jobs programme,
the Centre is looking to align both the Mahatma
Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Act and the
minimum wages in states to the consumer price index
or CPI.
(The committee will consult states on switching from
CPI for agricultural labour to CPI for rural areas and
linking it to minimum wages for states.)
Officials said the government wants to reduce the gap
between the minimum wages in states and those under
MGNREGA. A new committee comprising state
secretaries has been formed to examine the
recommendations made by the Mahendra Dev
Committee last year on wage calculation to suggest
changes in methodology.
Headed by Nagesh Singh, additional secretary in rural
development ministry, the committee will consult
states on switching from CPI for agricultural labour to
CPI for rural areas and linking it to minimum wages
for states. “States do not follow any standard price
index to revise wages… If we revise MGNREGA
wage calculation, states should also follow the same
process to avoid discrepancies and comparisons in
future,” a senior official said, requesting not to be
identified.
The average wages under the scheme were increased
2.7% for 2017-18 following the changes in CPI for
agricultural labour. For several states including Uttar
Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand this
translated to a mere Re 1 hike in wages. “This was
because 60% weight is for food items in the index, the
cost of which comes down a lot for the rural poor and
so inflationary trend does not get captured,” the
official said.
The rural development ministry is keen on a mid-
course correction in the MGNREGA wage rate once
the recommendation of the new committee formed is
approved by the finance ministry. However, the
committee has suggested getting the states on board
for adopting the same price index to build parity in
wage rates.
According to government data, in the current financial
year 20.88 crore person days of work has been
generated so far and 89% of wage payments have been
made within 15 days of work done as mandated by
MGNREGA. The committee is also studying the
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
financial impact of switching the price index for wage
calculation for the scheme and is likely to make a
presentation to the finance ministry next month with
its final recommendations.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/bid-to-
reduce-gap-between-mgnrega-state-
wages/articleshow/58797013.cms
Jammu gets lion’s share under MNREGA
Of Rs 552, only Rs 178 crore sanctioned for Kashmir
BK Web Desk/Srinagar, May 27, 2017
Jammu Kashmir Government has sanctioned more
funds to Jammu Division as compared to Kashmir to
implement different schemes under Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
(MGNREGA) for current financial year 2017-18.
Well placed sources said that Rs 374 crore has gone
into the kitty of Jammu Divisions while peanuts (Rs
178 crore) have been sanctioned for Kashmir Division.
The ironical part is that as compared to whooping Rs
55 crore sanctioned to Jammu district, Srinagar has
been awarded only Rs one crore. Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act” (or,
MGNREGA), is a labour law and social security
measure that aims to guarantee the ‘right to work’. It
aims to enhance livelihood security in rural areas by
providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a
financial year to every household whose adult
members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.
Sources said that Rural Development and Panchayati
Raj Department in a bid to implement MGNREGA
schemes in Jammu and Kashmir has sanctioned Rs 570
crore out of which Jammu has got Rs 374 crore,
Kashmir Rs 178 crore and Rs 18 crore has been
sanctioned for the Ladakh region.
The fund distribution district wise data reveals that
Srinagar has been allotted Rs one crore, Jammu Rs 55
crore, Anantnag Rs 45 crore, Budgam 12 crore,
Bandipora 6 crore, Baramulla 18 crore, Ganderbal 13
crore, Kulgam and Kupwara Rs 33 crore each,
Pulwama 10 crore, Shopian 7 crore, Samba Rs 6 crore,
Reasi Rs 30 crore, Kathua Rs 18 crore, Kishtwar Rs 70
crore, Poonch Rs 37 crore, Rajouri Rs 56 crore,
Ramban 12 crore, Udhampur Rs 20 crore, Kargil Rs 6
crore and Leh has been allotted Rs 12 crore.
Castigating Rural Development Ministry for resorting
to discrimination, Kashmiri employees told CNS that
major gap in fund distribution is aimed at to provide
salaries to those people in Jammu who have illegally
been adjusted in the department.
“The funds that are made available to Block
Development Offices are being spent on the official
tours of bureaucrats and ministers. The expenditure
incurring on the tour and travels of these top officials
is borne by employees working under MGNREGA,”
they said. (CNS)
http://brighterkashmir.com/jammu-gets-lions-share-under-mnrega/
Glitch in govt. transfers delays Rs.3045 cr in
NREGA wages
Special Correspondent, NEW DELHI, May 26, 2017
21:03 IST, Updated: May 26, 2017 21:03 IST
Kerala, Uttarakhand worst hit as no pay orders have
been cleared since April 15
Delays in the payment of National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (NREGA) wages have mounted
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
drastically in April-May 2017, as Fund Transfer
Orders (FTOs) worth �3,045 crore are yet to be
processed by the central government’s National
Electronic Fund Management System (NEFMS).
(Village women work under MGNREGA scheme at
Jagannath Prasad village in Ganjam district, Orissa).
According to data collated from the NREGA website
by the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha, a platform that
tracks the implementation of the workfare programme,
63% of the unprocessed FTOs were generated in
April-May. The processing delay was highest in the
cases of Kerala and Uttarakhand, where no FTOs have
been processed since April 15.
This follows another period of 20 days in March-April
2017 when no FTOs were processed by the Centre.
Eligible for compensation
As per Schedule II of the Act, an NREGA worker must
be paid within 15 days of completing his allocated
tasks. A delay in payment, for which the worker must
be compensated, has to be calculated from the 16th
day after task completion, till the time the money is
credited in the worker’s account.
A note released by the NREGA Sangharsh Manch
pointed out that the NREGA Management Information
System (MIS) has been programmed to calculate the
compensation in a flawed manner. It calculates the
delay only till the second signature on the FTO from
the state government, after which the pay order goes to
the central government for processing.
Systemic failure
“According to a recent study, it takes, on an average,
up to 25 days for the payment to reach the worker even
after the FTO has been signed,” said Ankita Aggarwal
of the NREGA Sangharsh Manch. “But this delay and
unexplained delays such as the one caused by the
current non-processing of the FTOs, is not accounted
for in the system.”
The Ministry of Rural Development has so far not
provided any explanation for the irregularities in the
FTO processing nor the flawed calculation of the
payment delays.
The FTOs haven’t been processed since May 2 in the
case of Karnataka, since May 8 for Bihar, Jharkhand
and Rajasthan, and May 5 for Himachal Pradesh. This
has resulted in workers in these States not having been
paid more than 15 days after completion of work.
However, the NREGA MIS (management infomation
system) does not capture this delay denying them
compensation.
“The government must adopt a system for NREGA
payments that is reliable and not vulnerable to gross
irregularities such as repeated delays in the processing
of FTOs,” Ms Aggarwal said.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/glitch-in-govt-transfers-
delays-3045-cr-in-nrega-wages/article18585704.ece
Modi government generated 813 crore man-days of
rural work in 3 years: Tomar
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
IANS | New Delhi May 27, 2017 Last Updated at
22:22 IST
The government created rural employment
opportunities of more than 813 crore man-days during
the last three years under MGNREGA, Pradhan Mantri
AawasYojna, Grameen (PMAY-G) and Pradhan
Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) schemes, Union
Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar
said on Saturday.
"During the last three years while 636.78 crore person
days were generated under MGNEREGA, about 78
crore person days were under PMGSY and 99 crore
person days under PMAY," said Tomar, briefing
mediapersons here.
He said under the Deen Dayal Upadhyay-Grameen
Kaushal Yojana (DDY-GKY), 86,120 candidates were
trained in 2014-15 and 54,196 got jobs.
"In 2015-16, about 135,000 candidates got placement
after skill training, while in 2016-17, the number of
candidates getting placement is 84,900," he added.
He said that Rural Self Employment Training Institute
(RSETIs) trained 400,000 rural youth in 2016-17 for
Self Employment.
According to the ministry, under MGNREGA during
2016-17, more than 1.23 crore assets have been geo-
tagged and placed in public domain and about 96 per
cent of wage payments were electronically credited
into the accounts of the workers through DBT system.
"So far, 8.73 crore Aadhar number of workers have
been seeded in NREGASoft (MIS) and 4.73 have been
enabled for Aadhar Based Payment with their
consent," said the Minister.
Under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY),
the Minister said that the pace of construction of roads
has reached a record of 130 km per day.
"This is the highest average annual construction rate in
the last seven years, with a record 47,447 km of
PMGSY roads constructed during 2016-17 connecting
11,641 habitations. This implies providing
connectivity of an average of 32 habitations every
day," said Tomar.
Tomar further said providing safe drinking water is
one of the top most priority of the government and it is
committed to providing tap water on a sustained basis
in every household by 2030 as per the United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals.
"About Rs 23,000 crore of central fund will be
required annually till the target is achieved," he said.
Referring to the launch of National Water Quality Sub-
Mission on Arsenic and Fluoride, Tomar said about
28,000 affected habitations in the country will be
provided safe drinking water by March 2021 with an
outlay of Rs 25,000 crore.
"Sanitation coverage has increased from 42 per cent in
2014 to 64 per cent in the current year and more that
four crore toilets were constructed," he said.
Under the 14th Finance Commission, the Centre will
be releasing more than Rs 2 lakh crore to Gram
Panchayats for 5 years to undertake physical and social
infrastructure projects in the villages.
"So far, Rs 51,234 crore was allocated to the states and
44 lakh panchayat functionaries were provided
training," Tomar said.
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
http://www.business-standard.com/article/news-ians/modi-
government-generated-813-crore-man-days-of-rural-work-in-3-
years-tomar-117052701223_1.html
1 L Dovas geo-tagged for scrutiny in J’khand
Tuesday, 30 May 2017 | SANTOSH NARAYAN |
Ranchi | in Ranchi
Jharkhand has acted promptly on the advice of the
Centre and went ahead geo-tagging all the assets
coming up under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Scheme (MGNREGA). Most
importantly, the newly found water conservation
structure, Dovas or small farm ponds, dug widely
across Jharkhand during the last year have made its
space prominently.
Latest information suggest that out of about seven lakh
structures being built through the rural job scheme
nearly five lakh of those have been geo-tagged.
“Nearly seven lakh personal assets have been created
in the State and five lakh of those have been tagged
with IDs. Notably, over one lakh Dovas have been
geo-tagged and uploaded with their pictures on the
‘Bhuvan’ website of the Rural Development Ministry,”
said MGNREGA Commissioner Siddharth Tripathi
referring to the ISRO build website meant for such
purposes.
Important to note here that the State quite notorious for
embezzlement into MGNREGA works has since then
improved its tally in the country in terms of assets
creation through the scheme and also in delivering
payments to labourers.
“Dovas have come up mostly in dry zones of the State
where water conservation and watershed management
were utmost priority. But we had to ensure that work is
done on ground and for that nothing could have been
more transparent than geo-tagging of the structure. It
not only uploads picture of the Dova along with
latitude and longitude but names of the beneficiaries as
well,” added the official.
Earlier, the Government had assigned the job to the
Jharkhand Space Application Centre but soon handed
it over to the Rural Development Department at the
behest of the Centre. Now, the technical edge has also
brought some new ideas for the Department to act
upon.
“We have been able to reduce uses of machines into
Dova construction by 95 per cent in the State, thanks
to this geo-tagging. It has provided an upper hand to us
in terms of vigilance. Officials have caught several
cases of deviation from the guidelines and use of
heavy machines in digging up Dovas and action has
been taken against those persons,” said a senior official
who himself was part of some surveys the Department
has conducted since the scheme was entirely handed
over to it by sidelining the Agriculture Department.
Though this year there is no clear target for making the
small farm ponds in the State as of now but the Rural
Development Department has prepared to shift genre
of the rural jobs scheme.
“For coming days we are to transform the MGNREGA
largely into a watershed development programme.
MGNREGA has infrastructure for work but without
technical knowhow and watershed management
programme has technical expertise. We have decided
to make a bond of the two which is going to be
implemented this year,” said Tripathi.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/ranchi/1-l-dovas-geo-
tagged-for-scrutiny-in-jkhand.html
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
Odisha govt takes MGNREGS route to build
Anganwadis
By Express News Service | Published: 31st May 2017
07:18 AM | Last Updated: 31st May 2017 07:18 AM
BHUBANESWAR: The State Government has set a
target to construct 24,481 Anganwadi centres (AWCs)
by 2018-19 in convergence with Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme
(MGNREGS).Administrative approval was accorded
for construction of 14,569 AWCs under the
convergence programme to tide over financial
constraints due to stoppage of Central assistance.
However, the progress is not very encouraging.
While 1,121 AWC buildings were constructed under
convergence scheme in 2015-26, an additional 2,307
buildings were completed in 2016-17, official sources
said. Construction progress of AWCs was reviewed at
the State Empowered Programme Committee meeting
held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Aditya
Prasad Padhi in the Secretariat here. Annual
Programme Implementation Plan (APIP) of around
`2,278.14 crore for Integrated Child Development
Programme was approved for 2017-18.
The APIP approved for 2017-18 would be
implemented with fund support from both the Central
and State Government. The funding ratio for
supplementary nutrition programme (SNP) is 50:50
and for integrated child development scheme (ICDS),
it is 60:40. Padhi directed the Women and Child
Development Department to complete buildings under
construction with toilet and water facilities and make
those functional for children during the current year.
Sources said work has not started on more than 5,000
AWCs while land has not been identified for 768
centres.
Presently, 43.52 lakh beneficiaries are being supplied
supplementary nutrition food daily in 72,452 AWCs of
the State spread over 338 project areas. Of the total
beneficiaries, around 18.83 lakhs are children between
six months and three years of age, 17.33 lakhs between
three and six years, 7.36 lakhs are pregnant and
lactating women, Director, Social Welfare D Prasanth
Reddy said.
Padhi directed officials to strengthen internal
inspection and reporting mechanism and ensure that
the benefits reached to target group in time.
The primary focus of AWCs is on poor and
malnourished groups. These centres provide
supplementary nutrition to children below the age of
six and nursing and pregnant women. Besides, pre-
school education to children in the age group of three
to five years is provided at these centres.
Slow pace
Govt sets target to construct 24,481 Anganwadi
centres by 2018-19 in convergence with MGNREGS
Approval accorded for construction of 14,569 AWCs
under the convergence plan to tide over financial
constraints due to stoppage of Central assistance
While 1,121 AWC buildings were constructed under
convergence scheme in 2015-26, an additional 2,307
centres were completed in 2016-17
Work has not started on more than 5,000 AWCs while
land has not been identified for 768 centres
http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/odisha/2017/may/31/odis
ha-govt-takes-mgnregs-route-to-build-anganwadis-1611149.html
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
Clear MGNREGS wagearrears, Centre urged
Special Correspondent, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,
May 25, 2017 18:43 IST, Updated: May 26, 2017
08:03 IST
House resolution says Rs.683.89 crore due to State
The Assembly on Thursday demanded that the Centre
clear the Rs. 683.89-crore wage arrears due to workers
under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme in the State.
A resolution moved by Local Administration Minister
K.T. Jaleel said out of the 32.39 lakh families having
job cards, 18.34 lakh families were actively rendering
jobs envisaged under the scheme.
About 90% of the beneficiaries were women. Despite
the government taking up the issue a number of times
and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan writing to Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, the Centre has not cleared the
arrears. This is unjustified, he said.
When the schools reopen in June, the women
beneficiaries were hoping to use the wages for paying
the fee and buying study material for the students.
Now their hopes have been dashed.
Though the Centre had granted Plan assistance to
various States in April, Kerala was deprived of its due.
Many States got more than its due too, he said.
Against the Rs. 2,146.05-crore due in 2016-17, the
Centre had granted only Rs.1,386.70 crore.
Dr. Jaleel said the State government has decided to
increase the material component of the scheme to 30%
to create more durable assets and also met other norms
laid by the Union government.
The House demanded release of the arrears at the
earliest.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/clear-mgnregs-
wagearrears-centre-urged/article18577633.ece
Few takers for rural job scheme
Posted at: May 21, 2017, 1:24 AM; last updated: May
21, 2017, 1:24 AM (IST)
Only 0.6% finish 100 days under MGNREGA; low
wages to blame
Nikhila Pant Dhawan, Tribune News Service
Bathinda, May 20
One of the pet projects of the then UPA government
— Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) — has been dying a slow
death as it is proving to be unsuccessful in attracting
workers.
Only 0.57 per cent households demanding employment
under the MGNREGA in the state completed 100 days
of work under this scheme in the state in 2016-17
financial year.
According to the figures, 12,47,455 households were
issued job cards in the state, out of which only
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
6,10,775 households demanded jobs. While 5,36,377
households were given jobs, only 3,511 households
completed the promised 100 days of work under the
scheme.
Labourers claimed that they preferred to be part of
projects in cities and towns in different private projects
because they get very less wages under the
MGNREGA.
Under the scheme, they are paid Rs 200 for a day’s
work. By working somewhere else, they easily earn a
higher amount than this. Labourers also opined that
another reason for workers not completing 100 days
was that they do not get their wages in time as
compared to jobs.
The scheme was started in 2005 with an aim to provide
employment guarantee of at least 100 days in the rural
parts of the country. Under this scheme, all persons
above the age of 18 years, who register for
employment, are given non-skilled work.
A way out
The Bathinda Zila Parishad, aiming to increase
employment of labour under MGNREGA, is planning
to be the link between the contractors and the labour
registered under the scheme. Bathinda Zila Parishad
chairman Gurpreet Singh Maluka has sent a proposal
to the Central Government to allow the ZP to charge
the farmers or contractors Rs 100 and provide them
labour. “While the contractors or farmers will get
labour for Rs 100, the MGNREGA workers will get Rs
200 under the scheme and the additional Rs 100 paid
by the contractors. This way, more labourers will be
interested in working under the MGNREGA,” he said.
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/few-takers-for-rural-
job-scheme/410338.html
Three years of Modi: Rural jobs rise as 8.13 bn
person-days of work created
Centre created 8.13 billion person-days of jobs in
rural sector in 3 years
Sanjeeb Mukherjee | New Delhi May 28, 2017 Last
Updated at 11:34 IST
At a time when questions are being raised on the
number of jobs created in the organised sector in the
past three years of the Narendra Modi government,
data furnished by the rural development ministry show
that around 8.13 billion person-days of work have been
created in the rural sector under its various flagship
programmes, including the Mahatma Gandhi National
Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS)
during the period.
“The ministry generated 8.13 billion person-days of
work in the past three years through various flagship
schemes,” Union Rural Development Minister
Narendra Singh Tomar said, while highlighting the
achievements of his ministry in the past three years.
A person day is the amount of work done by one
person in a working day.
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
The maximum 6.36 billion person-days of work was
generated under MGNREGA, followed by 0.98 billion
under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana and 0.78
billion under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana
(PMGSY), Tomar said.
For MGNREGA, the rural development ministry was
also planning to tweak the method of wage calculation
and could consider linking it to Consumer Price
Index–Rural to ensure a greater increase. At present,
wages are linked to CPI-Agriculture Labour (AL),
which gives higher weightage to food items.
Due to this, the annual wage hike has been marginal in
2017-18 as food prices have remained stable or flat
due to the Food Security Act. “Linking MGNREGA
wages to CPI-Rural will ensure that hikes are optimum
as it has less weight of food items in them,” a senior
official said.
Meanwhile, Tomar said Centre’s total expenditure on
rural development increased from Rs 58,630 crore in
2013-14 to Rs 95,099 crore in 2016-17, a 62 per cent
rise, as improving the quality of life of the people in
rural areas topped the Modi government’s agenda.
The Union minister added the government enhanced
the expenditure to make gram panchayats poverty free.
http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/three-
years-of-modi-rural-jobs-rise-as-8-13-bn-person-days-of-work-
created-117052701137_1.html
MNREGA: Priority given to water conservation
Special Correspondent, Ballari, May 31, 2017 00:00
IST, Updated: May 31, 2017 04:31 IST
(Workers removing silt from a tank in Kudligi taluk
taken up under MNREGA, in Ballari.Special
ArrangementSpecial_arrangement)
Apart from preventing migration for want of work,
priority has been accorded for water and soil
conservation by taking up suitable works under
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (MNREGA) in 2016-17 in Ballari
district.
As many as 4,975 tanks/lakes were identified for
removing the silt in all seven taluks of the district.
Removing silt in check dams, mini-irrigation canals,
contour bunding and trenches, krishi-hondas,
construction of multi-arch check dams and mini
watershed development were also taken up under
MGNREGA during the previous year (2016-17).
K.V. Rajendra, Chief Executive Officer, told The
Hindu , that of the total 15,764 works pertaining to
water and soil conservation proposed, 7,362 had been
completed and 1,265 were under various stages of
completion.
Initiative towards Energizing MGNREGA. ……………
Silt to the extent of 3.35 lakh cubic metre had been
removed enabling additional augmentation of 19.28
crore litres of water in the tanks/lakes.
A sum of Rs. 82.70 crore had been spent towards
payment of wages to created 24.77 lakh person days.
This apart, tree plantation was taken up in a big way
all over the district on road side, vacant land at schools
and anganwadis, grave yards, farmer’s land and also
on forest land for which Rs. 7.39 crore had been spent,
he said.
“To mitigate the plight of farmers, particularly the
small and marginal, following drought due to failure of
rain for the second year in succession, the State
government had announced various schemes to benefit
the individual farmers under Chief Minister’s 21-point
programme. Under this programme works such as land
development, horticulture and silk development,
‘krishi-honda’, forestry, construction of sheds,
recharging pit around borewells, playgrounds and the
like were taken up,” he said.
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-
karnataka/mnrega-priority-given-to-water-
conservation/article18663753.ece