Sreelatha Menon: The disease within

While farm and industry sectors blame NREGS for labour shortage, the scheme is barely functioning.

A study by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry recently blamed the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) for labour shortage.

On the other hand, farmer organisations have been going hot and cold over how NREGS has left their fields barren — barren of workers who have gone to “greener” pastures — beckoned by, well, of all things, work provided under NREGS.

Moved by the concern voiced by farmer organisations, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar has promised to make farm labour available under NREGS — as if labourers under NREGS were some kind of slaves who can be passed on from one farmer to another, according to the demand made by sarpanches.

While agriculture and industry groups have raised the spectre of NREGS’ super powers that is threatening to finish off everything around, the ministry of rural development has acknowledged the scheme has been a disaster. It has failed to fulfil any of its commitments and it does not guarantee 100 days, or even a single day of work, every year.

The ministry has now appointed a committee under Planning Commission member Mihir Shah with others, including activist Nikhil Dey and former principal secretary of Andhra Pradesh K Raju, to chalk out a strategy to put the scheme in order. The numbers generated by the ministry underline the fact that the scheme does not work in most places, except may be in southern states, with villagers across the country getting just an average of close to 50 days of work a year. But, at the local and village levels, the number of days a year could be as low as one or two or none.

The farmers are migrating from villages, especially in northern and eastern states. They are going towards south, to the metros and new cities, to supplement their farm earnings.

Workers are not willing to work in the industrial sector. Industries probably need to examine the working conditions they provide to their workforce, majority of whom are contract workers.

Industrial organisations are yet to study the compliance of labour laws by contractors. The industry does not seem to be accountable to workers any more, reducing them to objects provided by contractors, outside the purview of all laws and controls. The units take no responsibility to ensure workers are compensated by the contractors. Big companies such as Maruti Suzuki India, which ironically is in the throes of a labour agitation, have tried to keep their dealings with contract workers fair, at least trying to ensure they get what they are entitled to. But few companies or employers try to ensure this.

Violations are taking place everywhere, and yet violators who deny the Provident Fund, Employees State Insurance privileges, and even minimum wages and bonus, to workers are rewarded by the government departments with the renewal of contracts.

As for farmers, the small ones till their lands on their own, and don’t need labourers. They also don’t wait for NREGS to provide them a wage. Ask any migrant from Hardoi or Malda. They abound in Ghaziabad and Noida near Delhi. They save between Rs 5,000 and Rs 6,000 a month plying rickshaws, selling vegetables and fruits, earning Rs 200-300 a day and going home every second month with their earnings and ploughing it into their plentiful paddy and wheat fields, ranging from two to 15 bighas. They help their family back home with cutting and harvesting. And, then come back and earn more.

Poor diagnosis has rarely helped find a cure for any ailment. Agriculture and industry sectors have ailments, whose roots don’t lie in NREGS that itself is badly suffering.

While contractors have taken over industrial workplaces, there is no effort to make them comply with labour laws. As for agriculture, all that it gets from the government is a mere Rs 15,000 crore annually, as compared to the Rs 1.5 lakh crore which goes into dysfunctional subsidised schemes such as NREGS and public distribution system, as agriculture activist Ajay Jhakhar of Bharat Krishak Samaj says. With such neglect, illness can only end in death.