Livid at the allegation of diversion of funds sent by the Centre to states for NREGA-mandated schemes, the Supreme Court on Monday warned to make an example out of Orissa to force other defaulting states to fall in line.
"What nonsense is going on? The Centre must take steps to ensure that funds released under NREGA reaches the target population. We want action in this regard and will not allow any fund to go waste," said a Bench of Chief Justice S H Kapadia and Justices K S Radhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar.
Though it said formal orders would be pronounced on Thursday, it minced no words in expressing displeasure over allegations that NREGA funds were being diverted with impunity by state governments, especially Orissa.
Taking into account the charges made by NGO `Centre for Environment and Food Security (CEFS)’ on the basis of surveys conducted by it in 100 villages of Orissa, the Bench said, "Orissa says officers have been suspended. That means they are admitting to diversion of NREGA funds. We want to know what steps the Centre, which sanctions the funds, has taken. It must hold an inquiry and take officers responsible to task."
Warning that it would call the chief secretary of Orissa to personally answer the diversion charges once the Centre conducted an inquiry and gave a report, the SC said, "Once we take action against Orissa, other states will fall in line."
The remark came in response to petitioner’s counsel Prashant Bhushan’s argument that the situation was more or less similar in other states also. CEFS had alleged that the Centre may have spent over Rs 95,000 crore till date under NREGA to generate hundreds of crores of work-days for the poor in rural areas but there was a complete lack of social auditing, rendering the welfare scheme meaningless.
The government said it had spent nearly Rs 95,000 crore, of which nearly Rs 62,000 crore was paid as wages under NREGA, which aims to enhance the livelihood security of people in rural areas by guaranteeing them 100 days of wage-employment in a financial year to a rural household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.