BHUBANESWAR: There are more than 62 lakh families in the state registered under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), but less than one per cent, or around 6,000, get the full quota of 100 days’ work.
The job scheme which has been running in the state since February 2006 provides a guarantee of 100 days of work in a financial year to rural households.
If the government fails to facilitate 100 days of work to the beneficiaries, they can claim unemployment allowance according to norms. So far, a total of 62,39,359 families have registered themselves under the scheme and have received job cards.
But while only 0.09 per cent registered families have availed full quota of job in Bargarh, it is 0.86 per cent in Balangir, 0.24 per cent in Kalahandi and 0.58 per cent in Nuapada district, panchayati raj minister Pradeep Maharathy said in a written reply to the assembly on Tuesday. In fact, not a single family in Boudh district availed the full quota of work. All these are traditionally migration-prone areas where lack of work often forces people to try their luck elsewhere.
Highlighting the trend, Maharathy said the government can facilitate 100 days of work only if the job card holder demands work.
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