MGNREGA

Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 This was perhaps one of the rare incidence when all the parties are speaking in the favor of once particular scheme. This scheme have really moved the things and for the first time perhaps stakeholders seems to be working in sync for a national scheme. Most important the scheme has a local flavor as the labor has to provided within 5 kms of radius of the village Stakeholders 1. Rural Farmer (landless or laborer) Family as job card is for full family. Now this scheme has included 5 cr (of 1.7 cr families) = one fifts of 25 cr rural labor (not population) 2. BC 3. Adhar 4. Auditor 5. Collector 6. State Govt (pays 1/4 of material cost and Administrative Cost). Have to pay unemployment allowance of min 100 day wage otherwise. 7. Central Govt.(pays 3/4 of material cost, wages and some admin) Issues 1. Reimbursement (allocation) not as per demand 2. Audit related 3. No skill upgradation 4. Poor Quality Work 5. Fake Enrollments AP has been considered a success story as they have appointed 3rd party auditors. My opinion :- The scheme is good but the object is wrong. I would repeat the impression of Deng Xiaoping - Move people out of villages to factory NREGA is doing opposite. It is taking people from factories to villages. It is sort of competing with Industry for competition. INR 120 (@ 2009 prices) is too high in some pockets such as Rajasthan to compete with industry such as solar. It is well documented that solar industry is suffering due to NREGA. The bill of $9 bn for 2011-12 is too high.