While the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act ( MG-NREGA or simply NREGA)has certainly provided an important means of improving rural livelihood prospects, it is increasingly clear that its implementation problems are increasing, and this is particularly true this year.
The disastrous condition of the most marginal rural workers who work in the 100 days work programme (MGNREGA) is now a burning issue in West Bengal. For more than six months, the workers are not getting their wages under MGNREGA. Both the central and state government do not seem interested in a solution. They are rather engaged in a war[Read More...]
At a time of continuing high levels of economic distress and hardship in rural areas, there is a very strong case for a big increase in budgetary allocations for those schemes which can directly help to reduce this distress. In this context two actvist groups known for their careful study and monitoring of rural employment guarantee scheme and which are[Read More...]
The stress on the economy became evident, especially in the aftermath of the raging pandemic from the 7.3% contraction in GDP in 2020-21. The distress faced by poorer households has continued over a period of time with the pandemic acting as a catalyst in increasing the woes of such households. In a latest round of survey conducted by People’s Research[Read More...]
Himachal Pradesh has been experiencing several adversities in recent times including erratic weather conditions. The year 2021 started with a prolonged drought spell and unseasonal, widespread forest fires. After this there have been several spells of very heavy rain concentrated in a short span, sometimes accompanied by hailstorm, which have caused extensive damage to seasonal crops and horticultural produce from[Read More...]
A law enacted by the previous UPA Government in India to provide rural employment guarantee proved to be a significant help in reducing the aggravated distress of the rural poor in pandemic times last year. However while the pandemic related distress had not yet abated, the union government with undue haste reduced the budget for this important program, leading to[Read More...]
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act currently offers 100 days of work to all rural households. Given the crisis in the economy and the slowdown of economic activity in urban centres, more people have now returned to their rural homes. NREGA Sangharsh Morcha on Saturday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking that the Union government extend the[Read More...]
The increase in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) wage rates for 2021-22 is extremely paltry (see the table). There is no increase in Kerala’s NREGA wage rate. Rajasthan’s wage rate has increased by just Re 1. In fact, for 24 states, the increase in the NREGA wage rate is less than 5 per cent. The country’s economy has[Read More...]
MGNREGA has been a controversial scheme, politically, since its inception in the year 2006. Some politicians has referred to it as a means for menial jobs to poor, while some others claim it as a symbol of erstwhile UPA government’s failure. But undeniably it is the only employment scheme that directly benefits the unemployed poor and downtrodden. It is quite[Read More...]
The miseries of the workers relating to Covid19 is unending one. Few weeks before we had condemned the reform of labor laws, initiated by the Union Government and subsequently followed by various states, because it was an attempt to take away the rights of workers they had achieved through their fight. In another incident, Supreme Court took a reverse stand[Read More...]
