-Hindustan Times Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka have written to Centre seeking a relaxation of the rule restricting employment to manual labour because large parts of these 3 states have rocky terrain. New Delhi: At least three states have asked the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government to allow the use of machines in work done under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which is restricted to manual labour,...

-ThePrint.in Under the Modi government, the MGNREGS has suddenly become both an indicator of rural stagnation as well as the proposed solution to it. Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had told the Lok Sabha in July this year that the Narendra Modi government was “not in favour of continuing with” the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme for long.  While MGNREGS’ target group is the rural poor, the Modi government’s...

-Hindustan Times Many analysts have underlined that the BJP’s below-par performance in the Maharashtra and Haryana assembly elections reflected concern, among other factors, about the economy, which slumped to a growth rate of 6% in the three months to June 30, the slowest pace in over six years. The government has already spent nearly 80% of its full-year budget for the flagship rural Job Guarantee programme, top officials said on Friday,...

-The Indian Express Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005, provides unskilled manual work for 100 days to eligible rural households. Facing criticism over rising unemployment and rural distress, the Union government plans to launch a new project under which a stipend of up to Rs 20,000 will be given to Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) labourers who undergo training in skills such as masonry or carpentry. The...

-The Indian Express There is no clarity on what could be the reason behind this rising trend of entry level workforce among MGNREGA workers but experts say this could be a reflection of rural distress and lack of employment opportunities. The steady decline in the proportion of young workers, those between 18 and 30, under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has halted and has begun to rise...