A report submitted by the Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj in Lok Sabha has urged the Union government to hike the daily wage under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) to a minimum of Rs 400 and workdays to 150.
The committee, chaired by Congress MP Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka, pointed out the failure to provide daily wages amid rising inflation in the country, making it difficult for MGNREGS workers to lead a sustainable life.
“The core objective of MGNREGS is to offer economic protection to rural households. This is being undermined due to insufficient remuneration. At least Rs 400 per day should be provided as wages, as the current rates are inadequate to meet even basic daily expenses,” the report read.
“Without a fair wage, MGNREGS fails in its objective of providing economic security to rural workers. To address the economic disparities and to ensure that wages keep pace with inflation, the committee again strongly recommends that the base wage rates must be revised immediately and linked to an appropriate inflation index,” it added.
Conduct survey amongst MGNREGS workers
The standing committee also urged the Union government to conduct a nationwide independent survey amongst MGNREGS workers, study its shortcomings and how to improve workers’ lives.
“This survey should focus on worker satisfaction, wage delays, participation trends and financial irregularities within the scheme. Therefore, the Committee recommends a transparent survey to gain valuable insights about the program’s shortcomings and accordingly introduce necessary policy reforms to increase the effectiveness of MGNREGS,” the report read.
The report also flagged serious concerns over the Union government’s delay in releasing its share of funds for wages and materials.
According to the report, the government owed a total of Rs 23,446.27 crore – Rs 12,219.18 crore in unpaid wages and Rs 11,227.09 crore for material costs – a total of 27.26 per cent of the current year’s budget.
Technical glitches in online attendance
Moreover, the standing committee’s report stated that often, MGNREGS workers are penalised due to technical glitches in the National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS).
NMMS is a digital attendance tracking mechanism introduced in 2021 to promote transparency.
“NMMS has faced significant failures, particularly in offline mode. It adversely impacts wage disbursement in rural areas with weak network coverage. Until the glitches are resolved, the committee recommends halting attendance recording via NMMS. Workers should not be penalised for system malfunctions,” the report stressed.
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