Today’s world is seeking for the professionals, the skilled ones. It may be a doctor, engineer, architect, teacher, scientist, etc. We think that our world is in hands of them. Is it true? To an extent, it is true. But not completely. Here the need of unskilled ones arises. Any development cannot be fulfilled without both of them. i.e., we need skilled ones as well as the unskilled ones. In a competition, one will win only if there is another one to compete. Likewise, an idea made by a skilled person can be implemented only by the help of unskilled ones.
But how will an unskilled be provided a job? Whether they get a good wage? Is he can manage with that wage?
To tackle all these problems, our Indian government passed an Act, popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) which was passed in 2005 under the UPA government, headed by Dr. Manmohan Singh.
The Act was first proposed in 1991 by P.V. Narasimha Rao. This Act has been considered as the ‘largest and most ambitious social security and public works program in the world’ by the government. The World Bank noted it as the ‘stellar example of rural development’, in its World Development Report 2014.
What is it actually?
MGNREGA is being implemented by the Gram Panchayats, with the aim of enhancing the livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year, to the members who registered under this Scheme, to do unskilled manual work. There is no involvement of contractors in this Scheme. It aims to guarantee the Right to Work.
The adult members of the rural households submit their name and personal details along with a photo to the Gram Panchayat. The Gram Panchayat after making an enquiry about the households, issues a job card, which contains all the personal details of the member. Then the person can submit an application letter for work to the Panchayat Officer. The Panchayat Officer will accept the valid application and issue dated receipt of application, letter providing work will be sent to the applicant. The employment must be provided within 5km of an applicant’s residence, and minimum wages need to be paid. If it is above 5 km, extra wage will be paid to the applicant. If the government failed to provide employment to an applicant within 15 days of applying, he/she is given unemployment allowances. This guideline ensures that, no applicant suffers under this scheme. Further, it ensures livelihood security to the people who registered under this program.
This Act also helps in creating roads, canals, wells, etc. This act helps in empowering rural women, maintaining social equality, reducing rural-urban migration, protecting the environment, improving the bargaining skill of the people, and so on. It helps in facilitating sustainable development and strengthening rural economy through the creation of infrastructure assets. The work seeks the climate change vulnerability during work and protect the workers from such risks.
Special works must be given for people with disabilities, and special job cards and personnel must be employed to ensure their participation.
The Act sets a minimum limit to the wage-material ratio as 60:40 and wages are given within 15 days. Wage rates ranges from Rs 135 per day to Rs 214 per day, which is decided by the Central Government. All the worksites have been provided with basic facilities such as drinking water and first aid. A weekly report on worksites is given by the officer in charge, which is a guideline mentioned under this Act.
Employment opportunities are here reserved for Women, which is about one-third of the total. It ensures equal wages are paid to men and women irrespective of gender inequality. It also ensures child care facilities at the worksite. All these important provisions have made this act, a boon for the rural women, who has been kept inside the four walls of their home.
The Gram Sabha is the stage for the wage seekers to raise their voice and put forward their demands. It is the Gram Sabha or Gram Panchayat which approves the shelf of works under MGNREGA.
The Outcomes of MGNREGA
The Scheme now covers 648 districts, 6,849 blocks and 2,50,411 Gram Panchayats in the financial year 2015-16. Around 5 crore households have been provided employment under this act since 2008. The average wage per person per day has increased by 81 per cent since 2005. The employment generated for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) is 51 per cent and that for women is 47 per cent. 146 lakh works has been taken under this program, of which about 60 per cent have been completed.
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act is actually a boon for the rural people to raise their head straightly on behalf of a society. This Act teaches us that “a difference can be made in the lives of rural poor, slowly, but surely”.
By ADITHYA SURENDRAN
