Question

Give the information about Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme.

Answer 1

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA):

• On February 2006, National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) was started with the objective of providing employment to rural people residing in backward districts of country.
• On 2nd October, 2009, the scheme was renamed as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
• To make this programme successful, government declared 2nd February as “Employment Day”.
• The objective of this program was to create assets through public construction activities and to provide employment to one person per family for minimum 100 days a year to rural and urban poor as well as lower middle class families.
• Under this scheme, out of total people to be employed, 1/3rd employment is reserved for females.
• As per this act the person who demands job would be provided job within 15 days within the range of 5 km. If few labourers are given employment beyond this distance then 10% extra wages are given to them as form of conveyance expenses.
• The labourer is provided at least minimum wages for physical labour he/she does.
• Labourers working under this scheme are provided job cards, which is valid for five years. After receiving job card if the labourers do not get employment then they are paid unemployment allowance.