NREGA schemes check villagers’ exodus to cities
Women making up the majority of workers is helping supplement incomes; money
is reaching those it should
Bhilwara (Rajasthan): IIn Danta village, 15km from Bhilwara city, 30-odd women
start filing in at 8.30 am daily to resume work on building a concrete water
reservoir. The women are among the 2,000 people in the village who have got work
under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) since the scheme,
promising 100 days of work a year to one adult member of every rural family, was
launched two years ago in the region. Many of the beneficiaries are women who did
no gainful work earlier.
In these rural parts, NREGA serves as an effective safety net for the unemployed,
especially during years of famine and drought, supplementing household incomes
and reducing migration to cities by villagers in search of work. It helps the rural poor
economically by not just putting cash in their hands, but also helping them create
sustainable assets.
National model: Villagers work on a
NREGA project in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara
district. The rural development ministry
plans to promote the district as a
development model by introducing several
pilot projects there. Madhu Kapparath /
Mint
“People get 100 days of employment in a
year and get Rs95-100 per day and,
hence, are able to earn close to Rs10,000
every year,” said Ram Deo, a social
activist associated with the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) in Danta
village. “Given that around 80% of the workforce under NREGA comprises women, it
means whatever is earned under the scheme is additional income for the household,
something that has helped increase their purchasing power and disposable income.”
NREGA is the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government’s flagship
programme and has been credited with helping it return to power in 2009’s general
election.
Launched in February 2006, the programme, recently renamed the Mahatma Gandhi
NREGA, gets the most government money among social welfare schemes, with an
allocation of Rs39,100 crore in the year ending 31 March. As Mint reported on 23
January, it may get a 15% hike in allocation in Budget 2010, scheduled to be
announced on 26 February, taking the outlay to Rs45,000 crore.
For a change, the money seems to be percolating down to where it needs to reach,
resulting in the generation of income. In Danta village, this has had the effect of
stemming the movement of people to the city.
“Earlier, we would all have to migrate to a city during the lean season. But now, in
most cases, even the men don’t have to go,” said Kamla, an NREGA worker who
uses only her first name. “There is only one problem; we are not getting our
payment in time in this village. We get it after every three-four months. Also, with
such inflation, the minimum wage rate should be increased.”
NREGA stipulates that workers should be paid within 15 days, and timely payment is
crucial for beneficiaries of the scheme at a time when monthly headline inflation has
risen to a 15-month high of 8.56% on the back of soaring food prices.
Rajasthan is one of the states where NREGA is known to be implemented effectively,
and the ministry of rural development is looking to use Bhilwara district—also the
constituency of rural development minister C.P. Joshi—as a development model by
introducing several pilot projects in the region.
A social audit of NREGA was conducted by NGOs in Bhilwara in September-October,
making it the first district to be covered by such a check, which uncovered some
cases of corruption, irregularities and delayed payments. The administration of
Bhilwara district, however, said delayed payments do not reflect any lacunae in the
release of funds.
“Around 75% of the payments are made through post office accounts and delays at
that level might cause late payments, but funds from our side are released on time,”
said Manju Rajpal, district collector of Bhilwara and a former NREGA commissioner.
“To that extent, the postal department has to be strengthened. As far as timely
payments are concerned, our role is limited to depositing money in the workers’
accounts.”
Rajpal also said the impact of the scheme is now visible and one can see how it has
increased “bargaining power” as well as household incomes among the poor in rural
areas.
“Around 80% of the workforce is (constituted by) women,
who were previously unproductive. By working under the
scheme, women are able to bring (in) supplementary
income,” she said. “Also, NREGA does not just give wages to
labour, but also creates community assets which are useful
for the villagers in the long run. It has both direct and
indirect benefits.”
Till January, 481,912 households had been given NREGA job
cards in Bhilwara district and 386,734 provided employment
under the scheme. Of these, 116,095 have completed 100
days of work this fiscal.
To widen the scope of asset creation under the scheme, the
Centre last year tied NREGA to other government schemes related to agriculture,
water resources, land resources, forests and rural roads.
Apart from traditional NREGA work such as digging wells and ponds and building
water reservoirs, paved roads are now being built in Bhilwara district in association
with the public works department (PWD). According to officials, 257 such roads have
been sanctioned, 185 are under construction and 34 have already been completed.
“We are also in talks with dairy cooperatives for work related to dairies under
NREGA. The forest department has also been roped in, in some cases,” Rajpal said.
In Govindpura village, NREGA workers are constructing a paved road under PWD.
“I have already worked for 65 days and am getting Rs90-95 per day,” said worker
Leela Ramlal, who made the point that people don’t need to go off to cities any more
during the lean season.
Most villagers prefer to work under NREGA rather than in factories nearby since the
scheme entails eight hours of labour a day against the 12 hours workers have to put
in at the latter.
“Our payment is usually regular and we get paid within 15 days of work.” Ramlal
said. “Since we have started working under NREGA, our economic condition has
improved by a great extent.”
In another experiment, the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES)—a nongovernmental
organization (NGO) based in Anand, Gujarat, which seeks to conserve
ecologically sensitive land and water resources—is working as the implementing
agency for NREGA in a few villages in Bhilwara and Udaipur districts. FES—the only
NGO acting as an NREGA implementing body in Rajasthan—aims to leverage the
scheme to scale up measures for environment, land, soil and water conservation.
In Manoharpura village in the north-east of Bhilwara district, where FES acts as the
executing agency, villagers are developing a pasture surrounded by a cattle
protection trench to prevent animals from destroying the pasture before it is ready
to be grazed. The 40ha plot also has a continuous contour trench to check soil
erosion and recharge the water table.
Manoharpura illustrates the impact of NREGA on the economic lives of the rural poor
and consequently, on migration.
Inhabited primarily by the Bhil and Kalbelia tribes, apart from Rajputs and Brahmins,
the village earlier saw large-scale migration of entire families to cities during lean
periods—a trend that is fading now.
Before NREGA, all the 10 Kalbelia families in the village would migrate to cities, said
Harnath Singh, activist and field coordinator for FES. That’s changed—just the men
from six of the families have gone looking for work in cities for a few months, while
everyone from the remaining four has chosen to stay back in the village, he said.
NREGA, it appears, has succeeded in removing the kind of wrenching poverty that
the community endured. “These Kalbelia families would often go from one house to
another in the village, begging for food,” Singh said. “Now, even that has ended.”
Source: livemint.com
Women making up the majority of workers is helping supplement incomes; money
is reaching those it should
Bhilwara (Rajasthan): IIn Danta village, 15km from Bhilwara city, 30-odd women
start filing in at 8.30 am daily to resume work on building a concrete water
reservoir. The women are among the 2,000 people in the village who have got work
under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) since the scheme,
promising 100 days of work a year to one adult member of every rural family, was
launched two years ago in the region. Many of the beneficiaries are women who did
no gainful work earlier.
In these rural parts, NREGA serves as an effective safety net for the unemployed,
especially during years of famine and drought, supplementing household incomes
and reducing migration to cities by villagers in search of work. It helps the rural poor
economically by not just putting cash in their hands, but also helping them create
sustainable assets.
National model: Villagers work on a
NREGA project in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara
district. The rural development ministry
plans to promote the district as a
development model by introducing several
pilot projects there. Madhu Kapparath /
Mint
“People get 100 days of employment in a
year and get Rs95-100 per day and,
hence, are able to earn close to Rs10,000
every year,” said Ram Deo, a social
activist associated with the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) in Danta
village. “Given that around 80% of the workforce under NREGA comprises women, it
means whatever is earned under the scheme is additional income for the household,
something that has helped increase their purchasing power and disposable income.”
NREGA is the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government’s flagship
programme and has been credited with helping it return to power in 2009’s general
election.
Launched in February 2006, the programme, recently renamed the Mahatma Gandhi
NREGA, gets the most government money among social welfare schemes, with an
allocation of Rs39,100 crore in the year ending 31 March. As Mint reported on 23
January, it may get a 15% hike in allocation in Budget 2010, scheduled to be
announced on 26 February, taking the outlay to Rs45,000 crore.
For a change, the money seems to be percolating down to where it needs to reach,
resulting in the generation of income. In Danta village, this has had the effect of
stemming the movement of people to the city.
“Earlier, we would all have to migrate to a city during the lean season. But now, in
most cases, even the men don’t have to go,” said Kamla, an NREGA worker who
uses only her first name. “There is only one problem; we are not getting our
payment in time in this village. We get it after every three-four months. Also, with
such inflation, the minimum wage rate should be increased.”
NREGA stipulates that workers should be paid within 15 days, and timely payment is
crucial for beneficiaries of the scheme at a time when monthly headline inflation has
risen to a 15-month high of 8.56% on the back of soaring food prices.
Rajasthan is one of the states where NREGA is known to be implemented effectively,
and the ministry of rural development is looking to use Bhilwara district—also the
constituency of rural development minister C.P. Joshi—as a development model by
introducing several pilot projects in the region.
A social audit of NREGA was conducted by NGOs in Bhilwara in September-October,
making it the first district to be covered by such a check, which uncovered some
cases of corruption, irregularities and delayed payments. The administration of
Bhilwara district, however, said delayed payments do not reflect any lacunae in the
release of funds.
“Around 75% of the payments are made through post office accounts and delays at
that level might cause late payments, but funds from our side are released on time,”
said Manju Rajpal, district collector of Bhilwara and a former NREGA commissioner.
“To that extent, the postal department has to be strengthened. As far as timely
payments are concerned, our role is limited to depositing money in the workers’
accounts.”
Rajpal also said the impact of the scheme is now visible and one can see how it has
increased “bargaining power” as well as household incomes among the poor in rural
areas.
“Around 80% of the workforce is (constituted by) women,
who were previously unproductive. By working under the
scheme, women are able to bring (in) supplementary
income,” she said. “Also, NREGA does not just give wages to
labour, but also creates community assets which are useful
for the villagers in the long run. It has both direct and
indirect benefits.”
Till January, 481,912 households had been given NREGA job
cards in Bhilwara district and 386,734 provided employment
under the scheme. Of these, 116,095 have completed 100
days of work this fiscal.
To widen the scope of asset creation under the scheme, the
Centre last year tied NREGA to other government schemes related to agriculture,
water resources, land resources, forests and rural roads.
Apart from traditional NREGA work such as digging wells and ponds and building
water reservoirs, paved roads are now being built in Bhilwara district in association
with the public works department (PWD). According to officials, 257 such roads have
been sanctioned, 185 are under construction and 34 have already been completed.
“We are also in talks with dairy cooperatives for work related to dairies under
NREGA. The forest department has also been roped in, in some cases,” Rajpal said.
In Govindpura village, NREGA workers are constructing a paved road under PWD.
“I have already worked for 65 days and am getting Rs90-95 per day,” said worker
Leela Ramlal, who made the point that people don’t need to go off to cities any more
during the lean season.
Most villagers prefer to work under NREGA rather than in factories nearby since the
scheme entails eight hours of labour a day against the 12 hours workers have to put
in at the latter.
“Our payment is usually regular and we get paid within 15 days of work.” Ramlal
said. “Since we have started working under NREGA, our economic condition has
improved by a great extent.”
In another experiment, the Foundation for Ecological Security (FES)—a nongovernmental
organization (NGO) based in Anand, Gujarat, which seeks to conserve
ecologically sensitive land and water resources—is working as the implementing
agency for NREGA in a few villages in Bhilwara and Udaipur districts. FES—the only
NGO acting as an NREGA implementing body in Rajasthan—aims to leverage the
scheme to scale up measures for environment, land, soil and water conservation.
In Manoharpura village in the north-east of Bhilwara district, where FES acts as the
executing agency, villagers are developing a pasture surrounded by a cattle
protection trench to prevent animals from destroying the pasture before it is ready
to be grazed. The 40ha plot also has a continuous contour trench to check soil
erosion and recharge the water table.
Manoharpura illustrates the impact of NREGA on the economic lives of the rural poor
and consequently, on migration.
Inhabited primarily by the Bhil and Kalbelia tribes, apart from Rajputs and Brahmins,
the village earlier saw large-scale migration of entire families to cities during lean
periods—a trend that is fading now.
Before NREGA, all the 10 Kalbelia families in the village would migrate to cities, said
Harnath Singh, activist and field coordinator for FES. That’s changed—just the men
from six of the families have gone looking for work in cities for a few months, while
everyone from the remaining four has chosen to stay back in the village, he said.
NREGA, it appears, has succeeded in removing the kind of wrenching poverty that
the community endured. “These Kalbelia families would often go from one house to
another in the village, begging for food,” Singh said. “Now, even that has ended.”
Source: livemint.com