Allocations in the Union Budget for various flagship schemes under the Department of Rural Development was marginally reduced to Rs 1.20 lakh crore for the year 2020-21 from Rs 1.22 lakh crore in 2019-20, while the funds allotted for employment guarantee scheme MGNREGA came down by Rs 9,500 crore during the same period.
As per the Union Budget document tabled by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament, Rs 61,500 crore has been allocated for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) for the year 2020-21, down by more than 13 per cent from the total estimated expenditure for 2019-20 which was at Rs 71,001.81 crore.
However, the funds allotted under other premier flagship schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) and the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana (PMAY), welfare schemes for roads and housing respectively in rural areas, have increased.
Unlike the Department of Rural Development, the allocation for the Department of Panchayati Raj has almost doubled to Rs 900.94 crore for the year 2020-21 from Rs 500 crore from the estimated expenditure incurred in 2019-20. Both departments comes under the same Ministry.