The minister also alleged that there was large-scale corruption under the scheme in West Bengal.
New Delhi:
Additional allocations will be sanctioned for the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the Finance Ministry has assured that there will be no shortfall, Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh has said, dismissing criticism of the flagship scheme for not having sufficient resources gets, rejects.
In an interview with PTI, the minister also alleged that there was large-scale corruption under the scheme in West Bengal. When asked whether the Center will undertake an investigation, Mr Singh replied in the affirmative but did not elaborate on the nature of the investigation.
“The MGNREGS is a demand-driven system, everyone knows that,” he said, adding, “The Union Finance Ministry has released additional funds for it.”
Sources in the Finance Ministry have said that additional funds of Rs 28,000 crore have been approved for the MGNREGS, which would be approved in the next session of Parliament. The allocation for the MGNREGS in the Budget 2023-23 was Rs 60,000 crore.
Accusing the Opposition of creating confusion over the key rural employment programme, Mr Singh said, “Mr Kharge (Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge) and other Opposition leaders are creating confusion… The truth is that 2,644 crore employment days have been generated during the last period. over the last nine years and released over Rs 6.63 lakh crore as central share, which is three times more than the allocations made during the UPA regime.
He further said that under the MGNREGS, 48 percent were women employees during the UPA government. Now that has risen to 55 percent, he added.
Asked about the recent large-scale deletions of names from the MGNREGS lists, the minister said: “Some people may have died, so their job cards were removed, but not everyone could have died….” The department has been referred to investigate the reasons for the removals, he said.
According to figures released by the Ministry of Rural Development in response to a question in Parliament, over 5.18 crore employees were dropped from the MGNREGS rolls in 2022-23. In 2021-22, more than 1.49 crore employees were dropped from the MGNREGS rolls.
The states where a large number of employees were cut include Andhra Pradesh (over 78 lakh), Bihar (over 76 lakh), Odisha (over 77 lakh), Uttar Pradesh (over 62 lakh) and West Bengal (over 83 lakh).
When asked about the pending payments for West Bengal, the minister alleged that there is large-scale corruption in the scheme in the state.
“There is a looting going on…” Mr Singh alleged, adding, “In the name of the work of MGNREGS, they will write that a dam has been constructed. When it is inspected, they will say that it has been washed away by floods… “
Responding to a protest by TMC MPs in the rural development ministry after External Affairs Minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti failed to meet a delegation of around 40 party representatives on October 3, the minister alleged that the MoS had waited till 8.30 pm and that the TMC delegation was too large. .
“They wanted to create a scene,” he claimed.
TMC leaders were forcibly evicted from Krishi Bhawan by security personnel on October 3 and detained while protesting on the premises. The party leaders alleged that they were mistreated by the security personnel.
On the pending payments of those who have already worked under the MGNREGS in West Bengal, the Union Minister said there is a state government and they have to pay. “We are investigating the matter,” he added.
According to a written reply by MoS Niranjan Jyoti in the Lok Sabha during the monsoon session, Rs 2,770 crore was pending under the wage component for West Bengal.
West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress has accused the BJP-led NDA government of withholding Rs 15,000 crore in dues from the state under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and the Prime Minister Awas Yojana .
Asked whether he had met West Bengal Governor Ananda Bose or other state representatives, the minister said a file has been sent by the governor which is being examined by the ministry.
Speaking about the achievements of his ministry, Mr Singh said that empowering women through programs heralds a change.
“Empowering women through government schemes is the biggest achievement of the Ministry of Rural Development… Prime Minister Modi has promised two crore ‘Lakhpati Didis’. We will achieve the target before March 2024,” he said.
Under the scheme, skill development training will be provided to 2 crore women to encourage them to start micro-enterprises, he added.
Commenting on the Lok Sabha polls next year, the minister, an MP from Begusarai in Bihar, said the opposition alliance INDIA does not pose a challenge to the BJP and also expressed confidence that his party would win the upcoming assembly elections in five states .
“INDIA alliance will not make a difference, especially in Bihar. The people of Bihar love Prime Minister Modi. Who is the prime ministerial candidate of this alliance? Is it Rahul Gandhi, or Mamata Banerjee… Nitish Kumar or Uddhav Thackeray? Could they all be? PM for a month, or for a year… This is an opportunistic alliance,” he said.
“We will win all five states. The Congress is busy infighting in Madhya Pradesh. In Rajasthan they have already said that they are not sure of victory… In Chhattisgarh the government of Bhupesh Baghel has been exposed. I am confident that the BJP will win all the states,” Singh said.
Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana will go to the polls next month.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
