Tinkering with India's rural employment will hit poor
Fourteen NGOs have opposed the manner in which the United Progressive Alliance government in India has been rushing through the restructuring of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. They say it is against the spirit of the law and to the detriment of dalits and the poor.
New Delhi: Outlining the opposition registered by 14 organisations at a meeting recently, the People’s Action for Employment Guarantee on Monday accused the government of subverting democratic institutions by allowing NREGA works on private land of small and marginal farmers without any consultation.
Aruna Roy of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, Jean Dreze, a visiting professor of Allahabad University, Dunu Roy of the Sanjha Manch, Arundhati Dhuru of the National Alliance for People’s Movement, Annie Raja of the National Federation of Indian Women, Nikhil Dey and Kiran Shaheen said the Ministry of Rural Development did not care to go through the consultative process before taking a major decision in respect of the NREGA.
Underscoring the major change in the government’s approach post-elections, the activists demanded that it withdraw the decision forthwith, as the NREGA was in the main meant to benefit the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, Dalits, below poverty line households and land-allottees.
They alleged that it would lead to subsidising semi-agricultural activity of the more powerful vested group. Furthermore, monitoring the work on private fields was not easy for government agencies.
The activists said they were at a loss to understand the government’s decision to freeze wages. It was the prerogative of the state governments to decide the issue, and none could be denied the minimum wage, they reasoned.
They demanded the withdrawal of the order and hoped the Congress would keep in mind its poll promise of increasing the NREGA wage to Rs 100, linking it to the price index, and providing each adult with a job.
They also condemned the decision to allow the use of machines for works in violation of the law that makes labour component mandatory in expenses.
The proposal for convergence of schemes with other departments was another attempt at usurping the powers of gram sabhas.
Without the necessary safeguards, they said, this would only allow contractors and machines to dominate the scheme, to the disadvantage of the poor.
The Ministry will outline the new features of the NREGA at a function scheduled for August 20. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi will attend it.
These leaders hoped the government would not announce any decision at the meeting, and instead put forward proposals to facilitate debate.
They sought a law for guaranteeing employment in urban areas, providing for living wages and social security.
