Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday interacted with labourers working under MNREGA in the state today video conferencing. For the first time, these workers attended such a conference with the Collector of the concerned district and the Chief Executive Officer of the District Panchayat and had a discussion with the Chief Minister.
On this occasion, Chief Minister Chouhan said that work has been made available to every needy as per eligibility. New job cards will also be prepared as per requirement, so that people do not face any problem. Workers in every district needed work in this time of Corona crisis. Chief Minister Chouhan had given instructions to conduct these works in other areas except Red Zone. The livelihood crisis faced by the workers has been overcome through MNREGA works. The work of self-help groups and Swacch Bharat, water conservation, pond construction, check dam construction and Swachh Bharat Mission in MNREGA are proving to be a boon for a large section today.
Chouhan asked the Collectors and District Panchayat officials to monitor the operation of MNREGA works while adhering to social distancing. There is a need to provide work to every needy while protecting against Corona virus which affects the economy adversely. Chief Minister Chouhan said that under the leadership of the Prime Minister of our country, Modi ji, we are fighting a battle against Corona. According to his statement – “Jaan bhi hai, jahan bhi”, you have to make arrangements for livelihood for the workers by maintaining a distance of two yards. Work is to be done by adopting precautions such as using a mask or scarf, and washing hands with soap.
The Chief Minister informed that an amount of Rs eight crore has been paid to women self-help groups. At present, 14 lakh 64 thousand 969 workers are working in MNREGA, which is a record in itself. About 1.31 lakh works are going on in more than 22,000 panchayats of the state. Chief Minister Chouhan congratulated Additional Chief Secretary Panchayat and Rural Development Manoj Shrivastava and officers of all district panchayats for connecting large number of labourers to work.
Chouhan said that labourers should work keeping their own safety as well as the safety of the entire family in mind.