Subscribe
District administrations in rural West Bengal are resorting to innovative ways in their hurry to spend funds allocated under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme (MNREGS). In the Maoist-affected West Midnapore district, petty contractors are doing the earth work earmarked for MNREGS with excavators; the payments are released after preparing false muster rolls.
"At least 60 per cent of the work is going on like this," laments Sandip Singha a local activist from Paschim Banga Khet Majoor Samiti. As a consequence of prolonged political violence, the panchayat members have run away and local politicos and administration is running the show, alleges Singha.
Overall, the results are shocking. In 2012-13, till date, the state could only give 25 days of employment per household against the stipulated 100 days. The best the state could ever achieve was 45 days in 2009-10 after sliding down to 36 days in 2010-11 and further down to 25 days in 2010-11. The national average is 42 person days per household in 2011-12. In the current year, only 34 person days per household of employment has been provided till date.
Corruption rules
"In several cases false utilisation certificates were prepared when no work was done," continues Singha. "Even when work is allotted payments are made after three to six months—the delay is making the villagers averse to the programme and they are forced to migrate to cities."
|