About 40,000 workers worst hit, authorities unmoved
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, Apr 19: The much touted about Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme has failed to provide succor to its beneficiaries as payments worth over Rs 200 crore for mason and material have not been released for the year 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 till date for the reasons best known to authorities at the helm of affairs.
According to sources, the unnecessary delay in release of payment has led to a lot of public resentment as the basic purpose of the scheme to provide 100 days employment guarantee to people in rural areas has been totally killed. The people who worked on the schemes in different parts of erstwhile State of J&K are now running from pillar to post for release of payments but to no avail as the authorities at the helm of affairs don’t pay heed to their woes and pleas, sources added.
Sources said that the people who worked on these schemes to earn their livelihood have been left to starve due to the callous approach of authorities and the aggrieved people whose number approximately is about 40,000 are now seeking the intervention of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi who is visiting the J&K UT on April 24 in connection with celebration of National Panchayati Raj Diwas.
The issue was even raised by MP from Jammu-Poonch Lok Sabha constituency, Jugal Kishore Sharma in Lok Sabha on March 14 this year demanding that the pending liabilities under MGNREGA for the year 2016-17 and 2017-18 be cleared as the people whose payment has been kept withheld are facing many hardships. But the Government still did not take any step in releasing the same and provide succor to the people who worked on the scheme, sources added.
As per official figures, the payments worth Rs 79 crore are liabilities in Jammu district alone while the liabilities in total J&K will amount to over Rs 200 crore.
What has irked the people and led to the brewing resentment among them is that the Government withheld the payment on the pretext that the MGNREG Act has been violated in the year 2016-17 and 2017-18 while executing the development works in rural areas of J&K. The Government asked all concerned DCs to hold the investigation and submit the report but much to the chagrin of the hapless people who worked on these schemes the report has not been submitted by the concerned DCs till date.
The issue has been raised by the people, public representatives including Sarpanchs and Panchs umpteen times but none bothered to release the payment, sources said, adding the callousness on the part of authorities has put the people who worked on these schemes to lot of problems and economic hardships.
“The Government is giving much publicity that PM will address the Panchayati Raj Diwas programme from Palli village of Samba district in Jammu region but what is the fun of holding such programmes when the people who worked under various Panchayati Raj programmes are deprived of justice”, said Anil Sharma, president All J&K Panchayat Conference (AJKPC). He said if the irregularities were made in the construction of works by defying the rules or Act but that is not the fault of labourers or masons who worked on these schemes in the different parts of the erstwhile State. The irregularities were made by officers concerned and for the same the laborers can’t be made to suffer by withholding their payment, he added.
He said as per Act 60 percent should be labour component while 40 percent should be material component in execution of works under MGNREGA. But irregularities were made by BDOs, ACDs and Executive Engineers concerned. He said if any officer gave approval to 90 percent material and 10 percent labour component for that the labourers can’t be held responsible and put to problem.
He said the BDOs under the Act are empowered to sanction the works amounting upto Rs two lakh while ACD is authorised to sanction up to Rs five lakh. Till Technical Sanction (TS) is not accorded by the Departmental authorities the work can’t be executed, he added.
The liabilities are pending since then, putting the people who worked on these schemes to lot of trouble, sources said adding the people are so desperate after not getting payments till date that some have sold their land and others the ornaments of their wives to feed themselves but none bothered for their plight.
Sources said that lanes, drains tractor roads etc in villages were constructed under these schemes and the Parliament election in 2019 as well as the BDC and DDC elections which followed later were fought by the political parties on the basis of development done in rural areas through MGNREGA schemes but for clearing the pending liabilities no one came forward later.
The peculiar situation has taken place in block Nangali Sahab of Poonch district where BDOs totally defied the Government instructions asking Executive Engineer to hold physical verification of works. But the same could not be done due to the non cooperation of concerned BDOs who totally defied the orders forcing the Executive Engineer in his capacity as chairman of the Verification Committee to seek intervention of District Development Commissioner Poonch.
Delaying the verification and non compliance of orders by BDOs has blocked the payment of the labourers and masons who are making daily rounds of concerned offices but to no avail. The local leaders of the area also met the higher ups in Civil Secretariat asking them to release the payment of the hapless labourers as all the codal formalities regarding the execution of the work has been completed.
Director Rural Development Kashmir, Tariq Ahmed Zargar told Excelsior, that the Government has asked DCs to frame committees for verification of works and some of the Committees have submitted the report while others are in process and after the same the payments will be released.
Same were the view of Director Rural Development Jammu, Mohammed Mumtaz Ali. He too said that the Committees by concerned DCs have been constituted for verification. While some have framed the report the others are in process.
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