A commendable decision by the State Government that those in the Rural Development Department found to cause intentional delays in making payment of wages to the workers engaged under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), shall have to pay ‘delay compensation’ to the beneficiary from out of their salaries. This is an effective monitoring step aimed at hassles free payment of the wages for the work done under the scheme. It is a welcome step that this mechanism has been made applicable with immediate effect. Governor’s administration framing Standard Operating Procedure has thus laid stress on timely payment of wages to the workers.
Majority of the workers had been complaining of facing difficulties in receiving timely payment ever since implementation of the scheme in Jammu and Kashmir state and this issue had been figuring in almost all the sessions of the State Legislative Assembly and also in every meeting of the Rural Development Department but nothing of the sort towards addressing of the problem appeared having been done for obvious reasons at the ground level excepting recurring “instructions” being issued for ensuring timely payment of wages to workers engaged under the scheme. Now, a serious note appears to have been taken to link delays with salaries of the officials and we hope this must address the problem thoroughly. Such an administrative approach, where employees concerned are found to cause wilful and intentional delays for “known reasons” must be held accountable for manufacturing such delays.
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