National Rural Employment Guarantee Act - NREGA

In a country like India, even today, after more than 50 years of independence, the rural areas are the areas where problems like poverty, poor health, unemployment, illiteracy etc. ensures that backwardness continues to remain deep rooted in the society. Providing rural infrastructure for development, therefore, has always been a pressing need for policy makers and administrators since our political emancipation. Rural infrastructure for development empties those basic and essential things, which either lay the foundations for development or accelerate the process of development in a guided and controlled direction in the rural sector.

Despite differing interpretations of development and the varied understanding reached, the fact remains that no other single factor than employment opportunities can create influence, control and facilitate dynamics of change and growth. Development thus attained implies increased skill and capacity, enhanced freedom but self-declined behavior, emancipation of self, voluntary assumption of responsibility and empowerment inclusive, however, of material well-being.

Recently enacted National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (NREGA) is the revolutionary act in the above context, that may be helpful in the readrassal of rural unemployment but the key is honest and efficient implementation of the programme thus envisaged.

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill, 2004 promises wage employment to every rural household, in which adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. Through this Bill the government, aims at removing poverty by assuring at least 100 days' employment. The word 'poor household' was replaced by 'household' for guaranteeing jobs in every household for one person.

Recently NREGA has successfully completed three years. On the completion of three years, the ministry of rural development has published its achievements in newspapers. The published figures are given below:

 

2006-07

2007-08

2008-09

(Up to December 08)

Make available employment for families

2.10 Crore

3.39 Crore

3.51 cRORE

Created employment day

90.5 Crore

143.59 Crore

138.8 Crore

Participation of female

36.79(41%)

61.15(43%)

87.66(49%)

Scheduled caste

22.95(25%)

39.36(27%)

42.95(31%)

Scheduled tribe

32.98(36%)

42.07(29%)

33.42(24%)

Budgeted expenditure

11300 Crore

12000 Crore

30000 Crore

Total expenditure

8823.35 Crore

15856.89 Crore

17076.18 Crore

Expenditure on Labour

5842.37 Crore

10738.47 Crore

11646.57 Crore

Initiated total work

8.35 Lakh

17.88 Lakh

20.71 Lakh

Water conservation

4.51 (54%)

8.73(49%)

9.75(47%)

Land development

0.89(11%)

2.88(16%)

3.22(16%)

Facility of irrigation in the land of SC/ST/BPL & IAY communities

0.81(10%)

2.63(15%)

4.01(19%)

Total open accounts in Bank & Post office

Till date 5.77 accounts have been opened in Bank and Post office.

(Note-Labour charge  will mandatory be distributed by bank or post office accounts)


    SSK's initiatives.....

NREGA Camapign (15 August – 30 August 2007)

A one-month campaign on National Rural employment Guarantee Act was undertaken in the districts of Banda, Pratapgarh and Behariach. Information dissemination and awareness generation on NREGA were the key components of the campaign. Active participation of the villagers was ensured. Distribution of pamphlets and wall writings were also undertaken as part of the campaign.

Jean Dreze, a Belgian economist, is the chief author of the scheme The Scheme has been launched on February 2nd 2006 in 200 districts (out of a total of 593 districts) of the Country.

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