Khangshim, 30th October,2013
Mr. Hrangte Larte Kom, Sub Divisional Officer, Chakpi Karong Sub Division in Chandel District today said that there are people who say that Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme(MGNREGS) is a God-given gift thereby meaning that the job card issued under the scheme brings money that can be gotten free without working at all.
Speaking as a resource person in the morning session of the second day of the three-day Bharat Nirman Public Information Campaign being held at Koshang Memorial Community hall at Khangshim Village, Chandel district, Mr Kom said that what the people say about the MGNREGS money being free money is wrong, and that people in the rural areas should really work to get the benefits of the scheme.
He further said that if the MGNREGS is really a God-given gift, let the people enjoy its fruits in the right manner. “So even if not for six or eight hours, let the job card holders work at least for a few hours. Even if we can’t achieve 100 days’ target, why can’t we achieve at least 80 days?”
Explaining how the MGNREGS can become successful, the SDO said that success behind the scheme lies in the village labour. Last year in Chandel district, there was only 80 days achievement. We can’t achieve 100 days target because of village level lapses, not because of officials’ fault. There is no room for the Programme Officer to misappropriate funds, the Officer said.
Elaborating the goal of MGNREGS, Mr.Kom said that the goal of the scheme is to benefit the people in the rural areas by giving them 100 days’ employment at Rs 153 per day every year. The actual beneficiaries of the scheme are those people living under the poverty line. But in Manipur, be it in the hills or the plains, every villager, whether poor or rich, gets job card which is not right.
He appealed to the people of Chandel district, specially the Chairman and Members of the village level MGNREGS Committee, whoever was present at the hall, to coordinate properly with the Programme Officer to make the scheme a real gift of the God.
ISSUED BY PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, IMPHAL
LPD/YLS/L-79 30/10/2013 1200hrs
