NREGS fund makes it to Missing List
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, July 27 2011:
A sum of Rs 54 lakhs which the Government of India had provided as fund for taking up awareness programmes on Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in Imphal East district has reportedly remained unaccountable and missing.
According to a reliable source in the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), Imphal East, Rs 54 lakhs had been provided by the Government of India for taking up awareness programmes on Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which was earlier known as National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) at the time of launching the scheme in Imphal East district.
The awareness programmes were supposed to be conducted from the grassroots level onwards in all the 56 Gram Panchayats and 19 Zilla Parishads under Imphal East district to ensure proper understanding of the scheme by the public and its successful implementation.
However, with exception to a district level awareness programme conducted at Panchayat Bhavan, Imphal East, no other awareness programmes have been ever conducted or organised.
But the fund provided has remained unaccountable and missing, the source disclosed.
One of the main reasons for conversion of 'job cards' into 'job cars' in Imphal East district is the fact that no awareness programmes have been conducted to make the public understand the finer points of the scheme at the time of its implementation, the source said.
On account of various irregularities in the implementation of the scheme, job card holders have not been provided not more than 30 days of works since the launch of the scheme in the district till 2010-2011, the source pointed out.
Apart from all these issues, detention of the fund provided by the Deputy Commissioner and delayed in releasing the same thus leading to backlog in utilising them has created a situation where further fund for implementation of the scheme could not be claimed from the Centre, the source said.
According to some Zilla Parishad members and Pradhans of Gram Panchayats under Imphal East district, for implementation of the scheme in the district during the period from 2011-2012, a sum of Rs 19 lakhs had been sanctioned by the Centre in March this year.
In addition to this, another instalment of fund to the tune of Rs 36 crores had also been subsequently sanctioned
by the Centre.
From the Rs 19 lakhs sanctioned in March, 40 percent of the amount related to material component had been mostly withdrawn.
But the amount related to payment of wages to the job card holders is pending withdrawal.
Similarly, from the sanctioned amount of Rs 36 crores, mostly the amount meant for material component had been withdrawn and it is expected that wages for 40 days may be cleared to the job card holders for the period 2011-2012.The total number of approved job card holders in Imphal East district is around 63,000 and so far they are being provided job on an average of 10 days in a year.
The source asserted that with the Adhyaksha taking over the charge of chairman of DRDA from the Deputy Commissioner, utilisation of the fund in time has been ensured and there is a marked improvement in the implementation of the scheme although there is some resentment over fund allocation.
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