Jul 14 2014 : The Economic Times (Delhi)
NREGA: No. of Days to be Increased to 150
YOGIMA SETH SHARMA
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NEW DELHI
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The government is planning to raise the minimum wage days under its rural employment guarantee scheme to 150 from 100 in case the country faces a drought.The rural development ministry, which is working on the proposal, is of the view that 50 additional days of employment will compensate farmers who have suffered crop loss due to deficient rains.
“The scheme will come handy in addressing the financial needs of farmers,“ a senior government official told ET. “However, the extent of coverage will depend on how subnormal the monsoon is and what is the spread of drought.“
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) guarantees 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to a rural household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. On an average, 25% of the rural households seek employment under the Act annually.
The government's promptness in laying a road map to address the exigency can be gauged from the fact that from June 1 to July 10, the country has received 43% less rainfall at 142.6 mm against the normal level of 251.6 mm. Water levels in reservoirs have fallen below a 10-year average for the first time this year.
Rainfall so far this season has been lower than even 2009 when the country witnessed its worst drought in 37 years. Last month, private weather forecaster Skymet had warned that there was a 60% probability of a drought this year.
The worst-affected regions include central India, where the deficit is 63% followed by north-west (50% below normal) and southern peninsula (36%).
The rural development ministry had earlier issued advisories in May and June, asking states to create durable assets related to irrigation and their maintenance under the employment guarantee scheme. It has even set up a monitoring cell that will track preparedness of states in creating these assets on a fortnightly basis. Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh had last month said that the worst impact of a subnormal monsoon is likely to be in western India, with possible drought-like conditions in some areas. The government has already prepared a drought contingency plan for 500 districts.
The average wage under MGNREGA stands at ` . 174.3 per person per day after an over 11% revision in April. Haryana has the highest wage under the scheme at ` . 236 per person per day while Bihar has the . 153.
lowest at ` The government had last year extended the number of wage days under MGNREGA to 150 in Uttarakhand in the wake of floods that left thousands dead and missing.
“The scheme will come handy in addressing the financial needs of farmers,“ a senior government official told ET. “However, the extent of coverage will depend on how subnormal the monsoon is and what is the spread of drought.“
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) guarantees 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to a rural household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. On an average, 25% of the rural households seek employment under the Act annually.
The government's promptness in laying a road map to address the exigency can be gauged from the fact that from June 1 to July 10, the country has received 43% less rainfall at 142.6 mm against the normal level of 251.6 mm. Water levels in reservoirs have fallen below a 10-year average for the first time this year.
Rainfall so far this season has been lower than even 2009 when the country witnessed its worst drought in 37 years. Last month, private weather forecaster Skymet had warned that there was a 60% probability of a drought this year.
The worst-affected regions include central India, where the deficit is 63% followed by north-west (50% below normal) and southern peninsula (36%).
The rural development ministry had earlier issued advisories in May and June, asking states to create durable assets related to irrigation and their maintenance under the employment guarantee scheme. It has even set up a monitoring cell that will track preparedness of states in creating these assets on a fortnightly basis. Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh had last month said that the worst impact of a subnormal monsoon is likely to be in western India, with possible drought-like conditions in some areas. The government has already prepared a drought contingency plan for 500 districts.
The average wage under MGNREGA stands at ` . 174.3 per person per day after an over 11% revision in April. Haryana has the highest wage under the scheme at ` . 236 per person per day while Bihar has the . 153.
lowest at ` The government had last year extended the number of wage days under MGNREGA to 150 in Uttarakhand in the wake of floods that left thousands dead and missing.
