Mgnregs

Parliamentary panel recommends independent survey, revamp of MGNREGS

An independent survey of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) should be held to assess its effectiveness, a Parliamentary panel has suggested, stressing on revamping the scheme keeping in view emerging challenges. In a report tabled in Parliament during the last week of the recently concluded Budget Session, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj have recommended increasing the number of days of work under the scheme to 150 from the current 100, and also suggested that wages be increased to at least Rs 400 per day. The panel, which has been expressing concern over stagnation in allocation to the flagship rural employment scheme, has also stressed on social audits to ensure its proper implementation. "The committee believes that a comprehensive national survey should be conducted to assess the effectiveness of MGNREGS," the panel headed by Congress MP Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, said. It said the survey should focu

Govt considers increasing MGNREGS funds as rural work demand rises

Expenditure under MGNREG scheme has reached 106 per cent of the available funds, with Rs 82,963 crore already disbursed from the approved outlay of Rs 86,000 crore for FY25

MGNREGS, PMAY-G account for 75% of rural development dept's budget: Report

Flagship rural employment scheme MGNREGS and housing scheme PMAY-G together account for 75 per cent of the budgetary allocation for the Department of Rural Development, a new report has said. In the union budget for 2025-26, the Ministry of Rural Development was allocated Rs 1,90,406 crore. The Department of Rural Development, which implements programmes to provide employment in rural areas, support economic development and ensure livelihood and social security for the poor and vulnerable, was allocated Rs 1,87,755 crore, 8 per cent higher than the revised estimates of 2024-25, while the Department of Land Resources was allocated Rs 2,651 crore, 35 per cent higher than the revised estimates of 2024-25, the report by thinktank PRS Legislative said. As of 2021, 65 per cent of India's population lives in rural areas. MGNREGS, which provides for 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year for adults of rural households, accounted for 46 percent of the allocation for the

Congress demands hike in MGNREGA wages to Rs 400 per day in Union Budget

Accusing the Modi government of perpetuating a policy of indifference to the plight of MGNREGA workers, the Congress on Monday demanded that the Union Budget must increase MGNREGA wages and the Aadhar Based Payment Bridge Systems not be made mandatory. The opposition party demanded that MGNREGA wages be increased with the goal of hitting Rs 400 per day as a national minimum wage. In a statement, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said MGNREGA wages cannot be set by the arbitrary whims of the government. He said a Standing Committee must be established to evaluate the need for changes in the wage rate. The Aadhar Based Payment Bridge Systems (ABPS) must not be made mandatory, Ramesh said. He also put forward the demand that the number of workdays under MGNREGA must be increased from 100 to 150 days. "One of the earliest indications of Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi's uncaring attitude and shortsightedness was his mockery of MGNREGA on the floor of ..

Over 3.5 mn MGNREGS job cards deleted, 3.8 mn added in FY25: Govt

More than 35 lakh MGNREGS job cards were deleted in the current fiscal while over 38 lakh were issued, the government informed the Rajya Sabha on Friday. Job cards cannot be deleted due to non-linkage with Aadhaar, Union Minister of State for Rural Development Kamlesh Paswan further said in his written response. "Under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (Mahatma Gandhi NREGS), Aadhar Payment Bridge System is only a mode of payment and job cards cannot be deleted due to reason of non-linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts," he added. Paswan said updation and deletion of job cards was a regular exercise undertaken by states and Union territories. "In the current financial year 2024-25 (as on 16.12.2024), a total number of 35.57 lakh job cards have been deleted," he said. The cards were deleted due to being fake or incorrect, duplicate, households not willing to work, family permanently shifting from gram panchayat and "single person in job card and that per

Too early for mandatory Aadhaar based payment system in MGNREGS: Parl panel

A Parliamentary Panel has recommended that the Rural Development Ministry's Aadhaar Based Payment Bridge System (ABPS) for making payments under MGNREGS should not be made compulsory. In a report tabled in Lok Sabha on Tuesday, the Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj also said alternative mechanism should always operate to ensure that the primary goal of the scheme to provide wages does not get defeated due to lack of proper implementation of technology. The Committee pulled up the government on low wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) and recommended a better inflation linked index for payment of wages to the workers. The Committee noted that the APBS has been made mandatory since January 1, 2024. "While accepting the gains of APBS, the Committee is of the view that it is too early to make it mandatory as the problems relating to Aadhar seeding still have not been resolved leading to exclusion of lakhs of workers

Parliamentary panel raises concern over low MGNREGS wages, asks for raise

Flagging low wages under MGNREGS, a Parliamentary panel has questioned why the remuneration under the flagship scheme was not linked to an inflation index. It has also urged the Union rural development ministry for devising a mechanism for raising wages under the scheme. Headed by Congress MP Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, in a report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, rapped the ministry and said there had been no noticeable change in its stance. It has been sending "stereotype responses" regarding revision of wages, the report said. "Rising inflation and cost of living, be it urban or rural setting, has risen manifold and is evident to all. Even at this moment, going by the notified wage rates of MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act), per day wage rate of around Rs 200 in many states defies any logic when the same state has much higher labour rates," the panel said in its report.

Activists counter govt claims of timely MGNREGS payments, demand a raise

Countering the Union rural development ministry's claims of MGNREGS wages being paid on time, the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha on Wednesday alleged the payments to workers' accounts were being delayed by "weeks or months". The organisation -- a national platform of workers' collectives, unions, organisations and individuals working on the flagship rural employment scheme -- also announced a two-day protest at Jantar Mantar, starting Thursday. In a statement, the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha said economist Jean Dreze had pointed out that it was only Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs) that were generated on time, even as crediting of workers' accounts was delayed by weeks or months. The statement said Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers debunked the government's claims that the budget for the scheme had been hiked. They also demanded that wages under the scheme be increased to Rs 800 per day. According to the statement, Jharkhand NREGA Watch's Afsana Khatun said

Work demand under MGNREGS falls for 12th consecutive month in October

For the 12th consecutive month, work demand under the MGNREGS fell in October, reflecting a shift in the rural economy toward more lucrative job opportunities

Rural safety net: Dependence on MGNREGS needs to be permanently reduced

The scheme undoubtedly remains a robust welfare tool to support incomes and livelihood in rural areas. However, it should be the last option for people seeking employment

MGNREGS demand-driven scheme, not possible to fix enrolment targets: Govt

The rural development ministry on Sunday dismissed reports that enrolment under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is going down and said it is not possible to fix targets for total enrolment in the demand-driven scheme as the financial year is still going on. According to a report of Libtech India on the implementation of the MGNREGS, there has been an 8-per cent drop in the number of active workers under the scheme compared to last year. The report also said there has been a net deletion of 39 lakh workers, raising concerns about wrongful deletions. While the names of 84.8 lakh workers were deleted, only 45.4 lakh workers were added under the scheme. "Since MGNREGA is a demand-driven scheme and current FY is still ongoing, hence, it is not possible to fix an exact target of person days generation. However, the states/UTs can send proposals for labour budget revision as per the locally felt needs," the ministry said in a statement. "It may be .

Over 8.4 million MGNREGS workers' registration 'deleted' in six months

While 8.4 million workers were removed from the initiative, over 4.5 million new workers were added during this period, a report by Lib Tech, a consortium of academics and activists, claimed

Is the drop in MGNREGA work demand a sign of improving rural job markets?

Civil society activists and people working on the ground, however, believe that the decline in work demand is artificially created due to fund shortages for the programme

Statsguru: Monsoon migration lowers MGNREGS work demand in August

Overall demand for work under the scheme has dipped since the pandemic when over 133 million people sought work. In FY24, the demand had declined to 93.2 million individuals

Demand for work under MGNREGS drops for 10th consecutive month in August

Nearly 19 million individuals requested work under MGNREGS, showing a 17 per cent decrease compared to the same period last year

FY25 begins with tepid work demand under MGNREGA, shows govt data

In April 2024, around 21.51 million households sought work under the scheme, which was 10.59 per cent lower than the number of households who sought work under the scheme in April 2023

A better way to fix MGNREGS

The problems of the rural job scheme should be tackled through stricter monitoring, not by burden-sharing

Bengal, UP, Rajasthan availed maximum work under MGNREGA in NDA regime

These states had the highest percentage of households who availed work under the scheme in the last 10 years in proportion to the total households availing employment under the scheme

Over 80 million people worked under MGNREGA in FY24, shows data

It is the lowest number of beneficiaries to have accessed employment under the scheme since the Covid-19 pandemic

Revised MGNREGS wage rates below Rs 400/day promised by Congress: Ramesh

The Congress on Thursday attacked the Modi government after it notified revised MGNREGS wages for 2024-25, saying the daily wage rates in all states are well below the Rs 400 a day promised by the party under its 'Shramik NYAY' guarantees. The Union government has reportedly notified the revised wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said MGNREGA wages are revised annually with effect from April 1. "For 2024/25, the Modi Government has just announced revised MGNREGA wages. Leaving aside the issue of whether this violates the spirit of the Model Code of Conduct in view of the forthcoming elections, the announced daily wage rates in ALL states are well below the Rs 400 a day, which is part of the 'Shramik NYAY' Guarantees of the Indian National Congress," he said. The Congress' 'Shramik NYAY' announcement guarantees a nationwide minimum wage of Rs 400 per day to put an end to wage