Officials say the road construction case came under the scanner because of its sheer absurdity. But the fact is thousands of corruption cases have been reported in MNREGA works ever since the scheme, perhaps the world’s largest workforce programme, was launched by the UPA-I in 2006.
The objectives of the programme are, however, infallible. It promises 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every rural household, at an annual cost of nearly 1 per cent of the GDP. But riddled with allegations of mass-scale misuse, corruption and poor implementation, the scheme lost its way.
Studies reveal that less than 50 per cent of its beneficiaries were not even aware about the work-on-demand feature in the programme. And even a lesser number (just around 20 per cent to 30 per cent) actually know about their entitlements. In other words, the scheme failed to touch those it was meant for, in the way it should have.
Many who “benefited” were not the ones the scheme was intended for. Officials say the case of the computer data operator was not a one-off instance.
Apart from the creation of non-existent infrastructure and fake muster rolls with ghost workers, frauds were detected in office purchases like cameras, computers and other equipment.
Official records referred to instances of delayed payment of wages, non-payment and payment of lesser wages. There are many instances when workers were made to sign for 100 days, but given a few days’ salary. “Many had no issues signing as they continued doing whatever work they were engaged in while earning some extra money on the side,” they say.
Less than 50 per cent of MNREGA complaints met their logical end, and in a majority of cases, some lower-level officials were indicted while the masterminds, including higher officials and politicians, escaped any action.
Agrarian Punjab and Haryana faced a peculiar problem of labour shortage as the migration of workers from Bihar and UP reduced. Though this is no case against the scheme as employment opportunities should be available in all parts of the country and migration should only be a matter of choice.
But critics talk of fiscal deficits, inflation, growth slowdown and increased input costs of farmers because of the scheme.
Officials say the UPA pumped thousands of crores into the scheme and not even 40 per cent of the allocated funds were utilised properly. Mind-boggling amounts are believed to have been siphoned off.
CAG verdict
As per the 2012 CAG report, only 30 per cent of 129 lakh works worth over Rs 1.26 lakh crore approved in 14 states were completed. The national auditor held the Centre and state governments responsible for poor implementation.
The 100 working days declined to 43 days, as per the report. Government figures for 2013-14 pegged it at 46 days and 27 days in 2014-15 (till July 14). Then Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh called the report a performance, and not financial, audit. “It is CAG’s job to find shortcomings, and if they don't show, it means they are not doing their job,” he said, underlining that the audit was carried out at the government’s behest.
NDA outlook
The NDA led by the BJP went all out to criticise the UPA government, holding it responsible for all that was wrong with the scheme. In the pre-Budget days of the new NDA government, there was speculation about the future of the scheme.
BJP sources admit some favour reduction in allocation, but dismiss rumours of an all-altogether scrapping of the scheme. “There is no way we would have done that. It would have amounted to political imprudence,” they say.
Designing his maiden Budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley did not reduce the scheme allocation, though in his reply to the debate, he did say subsidies could not be “unquantifiable and for unidentifiable people”, perhaps hinting at the restructuring of social sector schemes.
Jaitley earmarked Rs 2.51 lakh crore as total payments towards subsidies for food (through the public distribution or ration shops), fuel (transportation and cooking) and fertilisers (mainly urea). For MGNREGA he allocated around Rs 34,000 crore, almost the same allocated by the UPA in its last Budget.
As he renewed the government’s commitment to provide wage and self-employment opportunity in rural areas, he specified that henceforth wage employment would be provided through works that were more productive, asset creating and substantially linked to agriculture and allied activities.
In private, BJP leaders say MGNREGA allocation may seem to have been maintained, but if fiscal deficits are taken into account, this was not the case. This is the beginning of the rationalisation of the scheme, which will be sustained but not expanded.
PURA model
The Modi government has already decided to prop up PURA, or Providing Urban Amenities in Rural Areas. Designed for infrastructure development and economic regeneration in rural areas, PURA was proposed by former President APJ Abdul Kalam in 2003.
The UPA implemented PURA, but, as per Minister of State for Rural Development Upendra Kushwaha, not effectively. The plan is to make Modi’s “RURBAN” concept an answer for all schemes related to rural areas.
The UPA’s flagship schemes, including the Indira Awas Yojna and MGNREGA, are being restructured keeping in mind the RURBAN vision that villages should have opportunities and amenities like cities while keeping intact their ethos.
PURA envisages clusters of villages with facilities like proper roads, schools and other avenues of education, skill development and employment. “The aim is to ensure amenities and facilities of urban areas in rural areas along with employment opportunities with the setting up of industries and agro-based ventures so that village residents don’t have to venture out for work, says Kushwaha.
The advantage
The scheme may not be perfect, but it has been effective. Views may vary but studies point towards growth of wages, employment, schooling, food and non-food consumption, calorie and protein intake, savings and also reduction in child labour. Rural-urban migration rates and “distress migration” dropped as the scheme was able to provide a safety net and reduce poverty levels.
Replying to a question in the Lok Sabha on “whether development in rural areas and the life standard of job cardholders had not been satisfactory despite heavy spending under the scheme,” minister Kushwaha underlined the following findings — increase in agriculture wages and enhanced bargaining power of rural poor; creation of environment friendly jobs; reduction in soil erosion and enhancement in soil organic matter; improvement in ground water table, agriculture productivity and cropping intensity; reduction in water vulnerability index, agriculture vulnerability and livelihood vulnerability; and reduction in distress migration.
BJP managers say they do not want to make the same political mistake by under-estimating MGNREGA as the Congress had while decoding its 2009 victory — overestimating the scheme.
The Congress attributed its rather surprise 2009 win to doles like MGNREGA and in the next five years, putting a break on anything that seemed pro-middle class or pro-urban, concentrated on building a plan for 2014. It belted out pro-poor schemes like right to education and food security.
Analysts say one reason for “policy paralysis” was that the UPA failed to decipher the potential of the middle class urban voters. The rural wage scheme may have helped the UPA reap electoral benefits in the 2009 general election, but it was not the only factor behind the 2009 re-run.
Enthused by the positive approach of the UPA-I, urban middle-class and young voters accounted for its sizeable vote share in 2009. However, the second-tenure benefits reaped in the early stages of MGNREGA turned into a liability as expectations increased and problems in implementation became pronounced. The urban middle class turned wary as the government concentrated on designing yet another pro-poor dole — this time the Right to Food.
A sizeable portion of the Congress’ 28.55 per cent vote share in 2009 turned against it, bringing it down to 19.3 per cent in 2014. In turn, the BJP increased from 18.80 per cent in 2009 to 31 per cent in 2014.
The BJP says subsidies and populistic schemes will be rationalised. “It is difficult to take away something that has already been given,” it says.
“Changes will have to be made gradually. Undermining MGNREGS and making drastic changes could have had a negative impact on the Assembly elections. The UPA would have gone to town about anti-poor NDA. Changes should be calibrated and phased,” party leaders say.
What next?
The new government will aim at shifting MGNREGA from demand-based employment to project-based opportunities. Kushwaha has been tasked to ensure a synergy, a convergence between different activities listed under the scheme and also related department and creating assets.
The ministry is considering amending Schedule I so that at least 60 per cent works taken up in a district in terms of cost are of creation of productive assets directly linked to agriculture and allied activities. This includes development of land, water and forest.
The remaining 40 per cent would be spent on infrastructure works.
The scheme would be used to increase irrigation facilities through activities like construction of dams and canals. “We are contemplating changes in the scheme to make it more effective. The ministry had initiated action to further improve quality and sustainability of works under the scheme. MGNREGA would be linked to other rural programmes, including building of roads, infrastructure and tree plantation,” Kushwaha says.
There are many proposals in the pipeline. “We have received a proposal from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to plant 13.65 lakh trees involving local community along the 3,405.88 km of the national highways. The proposal is under examination,” the minister says.
To bring in more accountability, gram panchayats would be asked to maintain a record of whether the work done resulted in a non-income generating asset or income generating assets.
“It is proposed that the wage-material ratio for works taken by agencies other than gram panchayats would be counted at the district level to facilitate making more durable assets. The associated outcomes of each work would be estimated before taking up work and the same would be measured after the completion of the work, thereby bringing in more focus for the outcomes. The quality of the assets will be improved through better planning and closer technical supervision,” he adds.
States have been asked to operationalise the provision relating to compensation for delayed wage payments as per the Act and strengthen social audits in accordance with the provisions of audit schemes rules 2011 issued in consultation with CAG. The government has already introduced e-musters with a view to avoiding bogus attendance and to check instances of tampering and misuse of muster rolls.
For smooth fund flow, the electronic fund management system (e-FMS) has been set up, which would also reduce delay in wage payment. All states are also required to appoint ombudsman at the district level for grievance redress and set up state and district-level vigilance and monitoring committees.
Many of these corrective steps — e-monitoring, payment of wages and setting up vigilance committees — existed during the UPA tenure as well. Jairam Ramesh had also launched a new version of the scheme, MGNREGA 2.0, adding 30 new works to the programme's list. Earlier, only eight types of works were allowed, but the new version covered almost every source of rural livelihood in every agro-ecological zone, from poultry, fishery, watershed development to sanitation works.
Glaring loopholes and mismanagement of a fine scheme apart, what perhaps also went against the UPA-II was an increase in the aspirations of rural voters.
What works for it
- Increase in agriculture wages
- Enhanced bargaining power of rural poor
- Creation of environment friendly jobs
- Reduction in soil erosion
- Improvement in ground water table, agriculture productivity and cropping intensity *Cut in water vulnerability index
- Reduction in distress migration
What doesn’t
- As per the 2012 CAG report, only 30 per cent of 129 lakh works completed
- 100 working days declined to 43 days, as per report; government figures for 2013-14 are 46 days, and for 2014-15, 27 days
- Mass-scale misuse, corruption
- Delayed payment of wages, non-payment and payment of lesser wages
