Orissa files 500-page response in Supreme Court over MGNREGA

The Orissa government today filed a 500-page response in the Supreme Court on the stricture made by the apex court on the alleged irregularities committed in the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in the state.

"We have filed a 500-page response in the Supreme Court on the status of the implementation of MGNREGA in the state. Action has been taken against around 600 errant officials in connection with the implementation of this scheme. In our response, we have also stated that the CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in the scheme is not needed as the Vigilance is already probing into the matter”, Chief Secretary B K Pattnaik told media persons.

It may be noted that on December 16, the Supreme Court had issued a showcause notice to the Orissa government asking as to why a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) should not be ordered into the alleged diversion of funds for the Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice S H Kapadia had directed the Chief Secretary of Orissa and additional secretary of the Union ministry of rural development to file a compliance report on the implementation of guidelines within three weeks.

The apex court had also asked them to file their response in the same affidavit about the CBI probe. The bench asked the Centre and the Orissa government to inform the extent of fund released to Orissa between 2006 and 2010. It wanted to know whether utilisation certificate for the fund was given by the Orissa government to the Centre or not.

Further, the bench asked them to inform how many people were employed under the scheme in Orissa and whether social auditing was done by the Gram Sabha or not. Additional Solicitor General, Indira Jaising said, “We want a CBI probe. We are facing resistance from the state governments. The states are supposed to convert guidelines into rules but they are not doing this”.

She informed the court that in Orissa, 11 lakh bogus cards under MGNREGA were cancelled. The court had granted six weeks to Orissa government to explain, as to why the operational guidelines of MGNREGA framed in 2008 by the Centre under Section 27 of the Act should not be made mandatory.“It is purely a question of law that the state should be ready on the next occasion to answer,” the bench said.

The apex court had favoured a Central probe into the diversion of funds and non?implementation of rural employment scheme MGNREGA in Orissa. It had said that the allegations were of serious nature as Rs 40,000 crore is being released by the Centre annually to state governments for implementation of MGNREGA.

The bench also wanted to know from the Centre what steps it intends to take on the allegations concerning Orissa.

The court was hearing a PIL filed in 2007 by an NGO- Centre for Environment and Food Security alleging large scale corruption in the MGNREGA scheme.

The court wanted a nodal agency to monitor the programme in the wake of allegations in the petition that the benefits of the scheme were not percolating down to the targeted.