Allegations of wages deduction, holding back passbooks raised
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, May 03 2020:
For too long, elected representatives of local bodies have been deducting substantial percentage of MGNREGS wages and they have been keeping with them bank passbooks of job card holders thereby making a mockery of the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system.
MGNREGS job card holders of Keirao Makting Gram Panchayat Ward No 4 have not been paid their due wages and they are yet to see their own bank passbooks.
Sources informed that such manipulation of the entire scheme is not restricted to Keirao Makting or Imphal East district alone but is a widespread practice in all rural (valley) areas of the State.
Speaking on behalf of the job card holders of Keirao Makting Mayai Leikai, one Zakir Hussain said that there are 360 job card holders within Ward No 4 of Keirao Makting Gram Panchayat.
During the past three years, they worked six times under MGNREGS but they never got their due wages to the full amount, Zakir Hussain said.
Moreover, the Gram Panchayat Member concerned collected bank passbooks of the job card holders and GP Member never bothered to give back the passbooks, he said.
Moreover, there are many mismatching cases regarding names, addresses and photographs inserted in the bank passbooks, he continued.
He then appealed to the authority concerned to look into the matter immediately and ensure that job card holders are given their due wages.
Reports said that Gram Panchayat Members in different localities of Langthabal Assembly Constituency too have been holding back bank passbooks and deducting wages of MGNREGS job card holders.
Moreover allegations have been raised of remunerations of job card holders being deducted.