MNREGA workers will soon help in addressing country’s climate change concerns with the Government converging the Green India Mission (GIM) — one of the eight missions under the National Action Plan for Climate Change — with the rural job guarantee scheme.
The Union Rural Development and Environment Ministries have prepared joint guidelines outlining modalities for convergence between the two schemes with a twin aim of mitigating adverse impact of climate change and ensuring jobs to the villagers.
The GIM was launched with an aim to increase and improve the quality of forest cover and contribute to enhance eco-system services along with carbon sequestration as a co-benefit while under the rural job scheme the Government is bound to provide jobs to the rural people for at least 100 days in a year.
Now, the Government has converged the two schemes to ensure co-ordination in developing forest and its fringe areas and community/privately owned forests, and bringing economic security of vulnerable sections in the rural sector in a holistic manner.
A senior official from the Union Rural Development Ministry said, “This will provide additional resources and the benefits to the rural poor besides generating sustainable employment. Also, such a convergence will optimize more efficient use of resources and avoid contrast activities which can disturb the balance in the ecosystem due to lack of coordination between different schemes.”
He explained that both MGNREGA and GIM aim to increase the forest/tree cover to the extent of 5 million hectare (mha); improve quality of forest/tree cover of another 5 mha of forest and non-forest lands; and increase forest-based livelihood income of about 3 million households.
As per the guidelines outlined by the two Ministries, all lands including village common lands, community lands, revenue wastelands, shifting cultivation areas, wetlands and private agricultural lands will be eligible for afforestation under this convergence
While the rural workers will chip in during plantation, protection and maintenance of the tree such as weeding and manuring for certain specified period, officials from the GIM will provide technical guidelines on type of trees to be raised and the type of plants for nurseries. Targets for plantation shall be fixed in a phase-wise manner.
On the funding pattern under the convergence, the official said that under MGNREGA, all the wages will be met as a 100 per cent central grant and the material component will be shared on 75:25 ratio between the Centre and State Governments. The funds from GIM will be used in case of shortage under the MGNREGA.
“Both the Rural Development and the Environment Ministries will ensure that adequate funds are made available at the field implementation levels to achieve the targets given,” the official added.
“We hope that this integrated development approach with climate change adaptation and mitigation concerns will also benefit MNREGS leading to better quality planning and selection of works capable of generating sustainable employment, he said.