Rajasthan
Rajasthan: From 53 lakh to 13 lakh per day, MGNREGA labour engagement dips massively in Covid 2nd wave | Jaipur News
JAIPUR: Compared to last year’s engagement of over 52 lakh labourers under MGNREGA at the height of Covid pandemic on June 14 (2020), the numbers dipped to 13.48 lakh on the corresponding day this year (2021) at a time when the state was reeling under second wave. The highest labour engagement per day in the state last year (2020) was on June 15 at 53.45 lakh.
According to officials and volunteers of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), lakhs of labourers are not getting work under the scheme despite a huge demand for it. They said while there was a huge demand for employment under the scheme last year due to large-scale labour movement at the peak of first wave, this year the numbers (in terms of labour movement) are low because either most of them have not returned to their previous workplaces or they have come back again (in small numbers) and are still demanding for work under the scheme.
“State government’s lack of monitoring, vision and commitment towards the scheme has led to a dip in labour engagement. If not 50 lakh labourers, they should have at least engaged 30 lakh labourers each day at this time of the year,” said an official. As per data received from the rural development department, the labour engagement on June 15, 2019, was 33.29 lakh.
“We have been demanding for work under the scheme, but the village secretary refuses to enroll us. My husband works as a driver. It is difficult to sustain a livelihood without NREGA work. I have been working under the scheme for the past two years, but never faced such challenges. Like me, there are many in the village demanding work under NREGA. But, all of us have been turned away,” said Dali Devi (45), a resident of Kachhwali gram panchayat in Rajsamand district. She has five daughters and a son.
The state’s rural development and panchayati raj department had issued guidelines to resume community development work under MGNREGA on May 23, allowing a maximum of 20 persons at a worksite. In a recent order, the maximum limit was increased to 30 persons.
“Thousands of people are staging dharnas at the gram panchayats demanding work. But the state government is doing nothing about it. How can you engage just 30 people at a worksite? Usually, at this time of the year, 200-300 people are engaged in work at a worksite in gram panchayats. Moreover, the 30 people who are getting jobs in a particular fortnight, are not repeated in the next fortnight,” said Mukesh Goswami of MKSS.
“We have submitted a memorandum to the chief minister (Ashok Gehlot) demanding that the upper limit of 30 workers should be removed. The work at the sites should start in full capacity. We will also be submitting memoranda to the SDMs and BDOs at 200 blocks across the state.”
Krishna Kant Pathak, secretary, rural development department said, :This year the Covid risk factor was much higher (in rural areas) than last year. There was fear among people last year but the risk factor was less. In villages too, 30,000-50,000 people were diagnosed with ILI (influenza like illness) symptoms daily (this time). Keeping this thing in mind, strict Covid protocol was enforced, allowing only 20 workers at a worksite initially. We will maximise the performance of the 100-day scheme in the remaining months of the year.”
According to officials and volunteers of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), lakhs of labourers are not getting work under the scheme despite a huge demand for it. They said while there was a huge demand for employment under the scheme last year due to large-scale labour movement at the peak of first wave, this year the numbers (in terms of labour movement) are low because either most of them have not returned to their previous workplaces or they have come back again (in small numbers) and are still demanding for work under the scheme.
“State government’s lack of monitoring, vision and commitment towards the scheme has led to a dip in labour engagement. If not 50 lakh labourers, they should have at least engaged 30 lakh labourers each day at this time of the year,” said an official. As per data received from the rural development department, the labour engagement on June 15, 2019, was 33.29 lakh.
“We have been demanding for work under the scheme, but the village secretary refuses to enroll us. My husband works as a driver. It is difficult to sustain a livelihood without NREGA work. I have been working under the scheme for the past two years, but never faced such challenges. Like me, there are many in the village demanding work under NREGA. But, all of us have been turned away,” said Dali Devi (45), a resident of Kachhwali gram panchayat in Rajsamand district. She has five daughters and a son.
The state’s rural development and panchayati raj department had issued guidelines to resume community development work under MGNREGA on May 23, allowing a maximum of 20 persons at a worksite. In a recent order, the maximum limit was increased to 30 persons.
“Thousands of people are staging dharnas at the gram panchayats demanding work. But the state government is doing nothing about it. How can you engage just 30 people at a worksite? Usually, at this time of the year, 200-300 people are engaged in work at a worksite in gram panchayats. Moreover, the 30 people who are getting jobs in a particular fortnight, are not repeated in the next fortnight,” said Mukesh Goswami of MKSS.
“We have submitted a memorandum to the chief minister (Ashok Gehlot) demanding that the upper limit of 30 workers should be removed. The work at the sites should start in full capacity. We will also be submitting memoranda to the SDMs and BDOs at 200 blocks across the state.”
Krishna Kant Pathak, secretary, rural development department said, :This year the Covid risk factor was much higher (in rural areas) than last year. There was fear among people last year but the risk factor was less. In villages too, 30,000-50,000 people were diagnosed with ILI (influenza like illness) symptoms daily (this time). Keeping this thing in mind, strict Covid protocol was enforced, allowing only 20 workers at a worksite initially. We will maximise the performance of the 100-day scheme in the remaining months of the year.”
