the MoRD made the following claims: https://thewire.in/government/mord-unable-or-unwilling-to-see-ground-realities-on-nrega-workers-group
1. There is no unmet work demand under the scheme.
2. This year’s Budget allocation for the scheme – at Rs 60,000 crore – is adequate, since supplementary funds are made available later in the year.
3. There is no delay in wage payments.
4. The National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS) app works smoothly and without glitch, with issues being resolved in real time.
All of these claims, the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha has said in its letter, do not match the ground realities.Many households, the letter says, do not know how to apply for more work, and that’s why all demand is not visible.
The Budget allocation is far from adequate, the letter continues, and the ministry is “deceiving” people by claiming that it is:
“It [the ministry] knows very well that the supplementary allocation proves inadequate every year and leads to wage arrears being carried over to the next financial year (more than Rs 10,000 crore this year). Meanwhile wage payments are delayed and NREGA works are often held up.” “The Ministry is careful to mention that payments are only “generated” within 15 days in most cases, but it knows very well that wage payments are routinely delayed after the generation of payment orders. Many recent studies show that payment delays remain the norm rather than exception.”
14/02/2023