After a massive slump in the number of labourers engaged at the sites of the rural employment guarantee works during the COVID-19 lockdown, the Rajasthan government has initiated steps to generate labour-intensive opportunities in order to give regular wages to the poor villagers. The flagship scheme’s wages have been revised from ₹199 a day to ₹220 a day.
Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, who holds the rural development portfolio, said here on Thursday that 6.08 lakh labourers were engaged under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) across the State during the last four days. Earlier, only 62,000 workers were employed in the scheme till April 17.
Mr. Pilot, who visited the MGNREGA sites in Jaipur district’s Chaksu panchayat samiti, said the creation of rural jobs would ensure money in the hands of the poor and help the rural households. “This is our focus area as part of the economic measures being taken during the pandemic. All guidelines of social distancing, washing hands and use of masks will be strictly followed,” he said.
The labourers resumed work at Kumhariyawas and Titariya in Chaksu for construction of model ponds. Mr. Pilot said the works such as construction of houses under the Prime Minister’s Awas Yojana, cattle shed construction, vermicompost units and fencing and levelling of agricultural fields would be taken up with priority under the MGNREGA, so that permanent assets could be created for villagers.
Wage increase
Apart from the hike in wages for unskilled labourers to ₹220 a day, the wages of skilled and semi-skilled workers and recordkeepers at the MGNREGA sites have been enhanced from ₹213 a day to ₹235 a day.
The labourers who interacted with Mr. Pilot said the employment guarantee scheme was the main source of their livelihood during the present crisis.
