The Union Government has expressed its dissatisfaction over the tardy implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in the State and termed the expenditure as “below expectation.”
In a letter to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the Union Rural Development Minister Jayaram Ramesh expressed concern over the low expenditure under the scheme in the State. The expenditure has been only Rs 359 crore against the total availability of funds to the tune of Rs 715 crore as on July, which is uninspiring, the Minister said.
Stating that the expenditure under the central employment guarantee scheme was Rs 1,818 crore during 2012-13, Ramesh said that the expenditure estimated during 2013-14 fiscal had been pegged at Rs 1,515.79 crore.
Describing Odisha as a special focus State under the MGNREGA, Ramesh insisted upon creation of more man-days and utilsation of more financial resources. Earlier in May 4 last, the Union Minister in a letter to the Chief Minister had expressed concern over large scale complaints from people about serious irregularities in the implementation of the
MGNREGS. Pointing out that the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in its report had also found fault with the Government in the implementation of the central scheme, Ramesh sought an action taken report from Patnaik.
Ramesh, earlier, had also expressed his dissatisfaction over the lower participation of women in MGNREGS in the State, which was at a low around 36 per cent against 70 per cent in Rajasthan.