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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Govt trying to settle NREGA wage issue-Devika Banerji

Govt trying to settle NREGA wage issue-Devika Banerji

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published Published on Apr 9, 2012   modified Modified on Apr 9, 2012

The Centre is keen to resolve differences with rights activists over the remuneration under its flagship rural job guarantee scheme, which can potentially save it from paying 7,000 crore in arrears to states that have higher minimum wages. 

Wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) have risen for all states after the government made adjustments for price rise last month. But despite the revision, the payout is still below the notified minimum wages in eight states. 

"I am trying to have an out of court settlement for the issue. Now we can go for it because we have already revised the wages under MGNREGA and the disparity in many states have been addressed," minister for rural development Jairam Ramesh told ET. 

The rural development ministry is also amending the MGNREG Act to include a separate wage list for the scheme. The amendment will not only provide statutory status to MGNREGS wage rate but also give the Centre the authority to control the rates with limited interference from states. It will also provide for a periodic revision system for wage rates. 

"I will offer them the details of the amendments in the MGNREG Act, which will provide for a separate wage rate for the scheme and will address most of their concerns," Ramesh said. 

Nikhil Dey, a rights activist with the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) and the person contacted by Ramesh to facilitate a negotiation, said that the petitioner-Karnataka Prantya Raita Sangha-and Aruna Roy, who is associated with the case as an intervener, are open to talks. 

"We are open to any discussion on possible resolution of the issue. Our concern is that the constitutional right of minimum wages should not be defeated and the resolution should ensure such a right," he said. 

Dey said that while payment of arrears could be an administrative hassle, it would not be impossible to implement. "For us, the bigger battle is on the principle of minimum wages, rather than administrative issues." 

MGNREGS, which has millions of workers on its rolls, guarantees a minimum of 100 a day for 100 days of work in a year. Wages under the scheme are paid by the central government. 

The payout was initially subject to minimum wages in states, but the Centre later resorted to a separate wage list linked to inflation after several states increased the minimum wage rates arbitrarily. 

The wages set by the Centre, however, did not have statutory status, as they were not part of the MGNREG Act. In contrast, minimum wages are defined under the Minimum Wages Act. 

The issue came under the spotlight last year after the Karnataka High Court directed the central government to bring these wages on a par with the minimum wages applicable in the states. 

Fearing a similar move by other states, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee asked the rural development ministry to contest the high court order in the Supreme Court despite resistance from Ramesh. 

"I had a very different opinion on the special leave petition filed by my ministry to contest the Karnataka HC order. But, I do believe that providing arrears would be an administrative nightmare," said Ramesh. 

Implementing a revised wage rate linked to the Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers (CPI- AL), the rural development ministry provided for an additional 472 crore to match the MGNREGA wage rate with minimum wages in Karnataka. 

The Supreme Court has also, in an interim ruling, put a stay on the payment of arrears by the central government. After the first such revision, minimum wages have risen between 0.8% in Orissa and 24% in Karnataka, according to a statement by the rural development minister Jairam Ramesh in Parliament. 

After the wage revision last month, the number of states with pay disparity has reduced to eight, from 11 earlier. Among these eight states, the gap in wages is significant in only three: Kerala, Haryana and Punjab. 

"Earlier, we were not sure whether we will be able to revise the wage rates soon. Now with higher wages in most states we can try for a better resolution," he said. The next hearing on the case is on August 16.

The Economic Times, 9 April, 2012, http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/govt-trying-to-settle-nrega-wage-issue/articleshow/12590564.cms


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