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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | State turns new leaf with job scheme by Santosh K Kiro

State turns new leaf with job scheme by Santosh K Kiro

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published Published on Jan 25, 2010   modified Modified on Jan 25, 2010

Jharkhand has pulled off a remarkable turnaround in funds utilisation for the Centre’s flagship rural employment scheme, spending around Rs 500 crore in just over four months after September 2009 when it was pulled up by the MGNREGS director in New Delhi for poor implementation.

Of Rs 1,600 crore allocated so far to the state under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme for the current fiscal (April 2009 to March 2010), Rs 1,011 crore had been used till January 15 — about 63 per cent of the allocation.

That was better than the utilisation in the last fiscal (April 2008 to March 2009) when the total expenditure was about Rs 1,016 crore out of an allocation of Rs 2,000 crore. That worked out to a poor 51 per cent, primarily due to its uncertain political climate.

Effectively, Jharkhand has been under President’s rule throughout 2009. After months of administrative neglect during Syed Sibtey Razi’s tenure, it was Governor K. Sankaranarayanan who managed to change the work culture after he took over in July 2009.

“The governor monitored the implementation of rural works regularly, thereby helping the cause. This also meant that deputy commissioners started taking NREGS seriously,” explained MGNREGS state commissioner Sunil Kumar Barnwal.

Till mid-September, however, the record was dismal — the state was able to get only Rs 519 crore worth rural work done when Rs 1,379 crore had already been allocated by then (2009-2010).

It was during this time that Jharkhand was pulled up by the Centre on its poor performance during a meeting with MGNREGS director Nitin Chandra.

After the Centre’s September appraisal, the state was able to create another 2.86 crore mandays within the next four months. So far, it has created 6 crore mandays, beginning April 1, 2009.

How did it happen? Sustained focus at all levels during President’s rule, said Barnwal.

“The state administration had tasked all deputy commissioners to focus on the efficient implementation of the rural job scheme,” he said and pointed out that since the model code of conduct, enforced during the Assembly elections had no impact on its implementation, work could go on.

“This apart, we ensured that each village had MGNREGS work round the year, so that villagers could join the work as per their convenience,” he said.

In fact, Barnwal confirmed that from now on every village in the state would have at least one running work. “We have plans to create another 4 crore mandays in the next two-and-a-half months. Now is the time villagers will need work,” said Barnwal.

Just as well for, another Rs 400 crore was likely to be allocated to the state under MGNREGS, taking its total allocation for this fiscal to Rs 6,000 crore

The improved performance on the rural job scheme provides a beacon of hope for Jharkhand at a time when a new government headed by the JMM was finding its feet in the state.

It could also act a morale booster for other departments, most of which have faired extremely poorly.

Of Rs 8,200 crore allocated under plan head, various departments managed to spend only 3,000 crore till mid-January or a meagre 36 per cent.

Welfare minister Haji Hussain Ansari complained that his department, meant to work for tribals and minorities, had so far spent only 30 per cent of the allocated budget of Rs 450 crore.

Similarly, the food and civil supplies department had spent only 40 per cent of the total budgetary allocation of Rs 322 crore.

Better implementation of MGNREGS will be a welcome change in Jharkhand given that the adverse impact of a poor monsoon would be felt by villagers now.

“Last year, we had done badly. This year, we have improved a lot in the implementation of the MGNREGS,” said Puja Singhal Purwar, Khunti deputy commissioner.


The Telegraph, 25 January, 2010, http://telegraphindia.com/1100125/jsp/frontpage/story_12025153.jsp
 

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