Rajasthan
Rajasthan: Row over mandatory dose for MGNREGA work in Dungarpur | Jaipur News
JAIPUR: Simalwara Panchayat Samiti’s order allowing only those labourers to work in MGNREGA who have taken at least one dose of vaccine has courted controversy in the district.
The move was taken to encourage villagers for vaccination has been opposed by the Bharatiya Tribal Party. Dungarpur is among the districts which are facing severe vaccine hesitancy from the villagers, especially tribals.
The administration feels that this move will help people in dispelling the myth around vaccination. The order reads that only those villagers in the age group of 45 years and above and vaccinated will be added to the muster roll for MGNREGA. The decision was taken by Simalwara Panchayat Samiti Vikas Adhikari Harikesh Meena. TOI repeatedly called him, but didn’t get any response. The panchayat has 400 works approved under the MGNREGA which requires 6,000 workers.
The MGNREGA work has recently resumed and is the only lifeline for several households in the area. The area witnessed inward migration in March with the onset of the second wave. Anita Roat, pradhan at Jyotri village, said that this order would prevent several eligible persons to add their name to the muster roll. “If the government has not made vaccination compulsory, how can an officer make it compulsory for MGNREGA. It should be revoked,” Roat said.
Velaram Ghogra, state president of BTP, said that it appears to be an absurd call by the administration forcing the people to gt vaccinated. “This is not the right way to motivate people for vaccination. It will only create chaos among villagers or eligible persons who have lost their livelihood due to Covid. The officer should give them time for at least three months since the vaccination drive is very slow in the district,” Ghogra said.
The move was taken to encourage villagers for vaccination has been opposed by the Bharatiya Tribal Party. Dungarpur is among the districts which are facing severe vaccine hesitancy from the villagers, especially tribals.
The administration feels that this move will help people in dispelling the myth around vaccination. The order reads that only those villagers in the age group of 45 years and above and vaccinated will be added to the muster roll for MGNREGA. The decision was taken by Simalwara Panchayat Samiti Vikas Adhikari Harikesh Meena. TOI repeatedly called him, but didn’t get any response. The panchayat has 400 works approved under the MGNREGA which requires 6,000 workers.
The MGNREGA work has recently resumed and is the only lifeline for several households in the area. The area witnessed inward migration in March with the onset of the second wave. Anita Roat, pradhan at Jyotri village, said that this order would prevent several eligible persons to add their name to the muster roll. “If the government has not made vaccination compulsory, how can an officer make it compulsory for MGNREGA. It should be revoked,” Roat said.
Velaram Ghogra, state president of BTP, said that it appears to be an absurd call by the administration forcing the people to gt vaccinated. “This is not the right way to motivate people for vaccination. It will only create chaos among villagers or eligible persons who have lost their livelihood due to Covid. The officer should give them time for at least three months since the vaccination drive is very slow in the district,” Ghogra said.
