NREGA wages set to go up

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act wages is set to go up, with the government on Thursday stating that it would bring parity with the agricultural minimum wages in states. The ministry of rural development would soon ask the finance ministry for an additional allocation of '2,000 crore to roll out the wage hike.

Union minister for rural development Chaudhary Birendra Singh on Thursday informed the Lok Sabha during Question Hour that the government has accepted the report of Mahendra Pradhan, who has advocated equality with the minimum agricultural wages prevalent in different states.

“We have received report of the Mahendra Pradhan Committee on wage revision. We have accepted the recommendations. Soon the wage rate under the scheme will be equal to that which the respective state governments fix for their farm labourers,” the Union minister said. The government also informed that in a bid to prevent leakages in the MGNREGA programme, the ministry will introduce the system for electronic transfer of wages to the beneficiaries from January 1 next year in Kerala. Depending on the success in Kerala, the e-transfer would be replicated in other states, said the minister.

He also stated that those who have availed 100 mandays in MGNREGA in a year can work another 50 days if they are in drought- or flood-affected states.

He noted that MNREGA is a demand-driven wage employment programme and various modalities have been put in place to prevent leakages in the scheme. To avoid bogus attendance as well as instances of tampering and misuse of muster rolls, the e-Muster system has been introduced. For smooth fund flow, the electronic Fund Management System (e-FMS) has been made mandatory from April 1 this year, he added.

On the issue of delay in release of payment under the scheme, which was raised by Congress MP Jyotiraditya Scindia, the minister said, “There has been delay in provision of work in the generation of 1.65 crore person days for which unemployment allowance of Rs 137.89 crore becomes payable after due verification by the block level officers,” said the minister. He added that no state has reported payment of unemployment allowance.