5 DPCs asked to explain MGNREGS rule rejig
Source: Chronicle News Service

Imphal, April 03 2022: Though introduced to provide 100 days job every year to poor rural people of the country, improper implementation has made a mess of the beautiful Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Generation Scheme (MGNREGS) in the valley districts of the state.

According to a reliable source, state monitoring cell of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Government of Manipur sought explanation calls from five District Programme Coordinators (DPCs), who shoulder key responsibility in implementation of the scheme in districts, for according more importance to material components than paying wages to job card holders.

The explanation calls have been sought from DPCs of Bishnupur, Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal and Jiribam districts.

As per MGNREGS guideline, release of fund under the scheme should be made without altering 60:40 ratio to wage and material component.

However, material component in the five districts amount to Rs 170.72 crore were found to have been released against the actual amount of 143.07 crore thereby releasing an additional Rs 27.65 crore.

Additional release of mate rial component in the valley districts have affected material component entitled for the hill districts.

Such activities have raised a big question if the noble scheme aimed at providing jobs to poor people is being converted into profiteering scheme for few individuals.

Release of additional material component is against Para 20 of Schedule 1 of MGNREGS guideline.

Accordingly, additional chief secretary (RD&PR) MH Khan served notices on March 31 to DPCs of Bishnupur, Imphal West, Imphal East, Thoubal and Jiribam districts for submitting report within April 4 explaining why more importance has been given to material component rather than releasing wages for job card holders.

The source further informed that tentative allocation released by the department for the five districts as per the number of job holders was Rs 500.22 crore while amount allocated for material component was Rs 143.07 crore.

Material component amount meant for Bishnupur was Rs 15.89 crore while Rs 41.49 crore was for Imphal East, Rs 34.20 for Imphal West, Rs 3.76 crore for Jiribam and Rs 24.75 crore for Thoubal district.

In the explanation calls served by MH Khan, it was mentioned that Bishnupur district re leased Rs 17.66 Crore against allocated material component amount of Rs 15.89 crore while the amount released in Imphal East district was Rs 55.66 crore against allocated amount of Rs 41.49 crore.

In Imphal West district too, Rs 39.42 crore was found to have been released as material component against the allocated amount of Rs 34.20 while Jiribam district too was found releasing Rs 5.11 crore against the allocated amount of Rs 3.76 crore.

Material component amount allocated for Thoubal district was Rs 24.75 crore but it was found to have released Rs 32.64 crore.

Mention may be made here that Panchayati Raj functionaries of the state had earlier launched intense agitation against non-distribution of MGNREGS fund by the finance department citing poor financial condition of the state though the Government of India timely released the central share of the fund.

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