Accusing the Modi government of perpetuating a policy of indifference to the plight of MGNREGA workers, the Congress on Monday (January 27, 2025) demanded that the Union Budget must increase MGNREGA wages and the Aadhar-Based Payment Bridge Systems not be made mandatory.
The Opposition party demanded that MGNREGA wages be increased with the goal of hitting ₹400 per day as a national minimum wage. In a statement, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said MGNREGA wages cannot be set by the arbitrary whims of the government.
He said a Standing Committee must be established to evaluate the need for changes in the wage rate. “The Aadhar-Based Payment Bridge Systems (ABPS) must not be made mandatory,” Mr. Ramesh said.
He also put forward the demand that the number of workdays under MGNREGA must be increased from 100 to 150 days. “One of the earliest indications of Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi‘s uncaring attitude and shortsightedness was his mockery of MGNREGA on the floor of Parliament in 2015,” Mr. Ramesh said.
In the years since, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, MGNREGA has conclusively demonstrated its utility as one of the few social security interventions that the government can execute, he said.
“From a pre-pandemic total of 6.16 crore households requesting work under the scheme in 2019-20, the numbers jumped by 33% to 8.55 crore in 2020-2021,” he said. “For these crores of families, MGNREGA was the only lifeline amidst the chaos of the government’s unplanned lockdowns,” Mr. Ramesh said.
“Amidst an ongoing economic slowdown, there continue to be 9.31 crore active workers that are employed under the programme as of January 2025. Close to 75% of these workers are women. Despite this reality, the government continues to perpetuate a policy of indifference to their plight,” he alleged.
As a share of GDP, allocations to MGNREGA have been reduced to 0.26% in 2024-25, Mr. Ramesh said pointing out that the World Bank recommends that at least 1.7% of the GDP should be allocated to this programme.
“Of the Budgetary allocations made to MGNREGA, estimates suggest that about 20% of the Budget is paid towards clearing dues from previous years,” he said. “The minimum average notified wage rate was increased by 7% in FY25- at a time when Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation is estimated to be 5%. The real wage increase is therefore a miserly 2%,” he pointed out.
“Between 2019-20 and 2023-24, close to four crore job cards were deleted. Meanwhile, only 1.2 crore job cards have been added in the last two years,” Mr. Ramesh said.
“Estimates from one State suggest that 15% of the deletions were wrongful and on January 1, 2024, the Central Government made it mandatory that all payments for MGNREGA must be through the Aadhar-Based Payment System (ABPS),” the Congress general secretary said.
“However, 27% of workers are ineligible for payment under the ABPS and their demand for work is not registered,” he said, adding that many also lose their wages despite doing work.
“The National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS) is also required for workers to register attendance. However, glitches in the app, limited access to smartphones, and irregular connectivity have resulted in widespread prevalence of unregistered attendance, unrecorded work, and delayed wage payments,” Mr. Ramesh argued.
“During the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, MGNREGA workers from across the country raised these issues at the Jan Sunwai held at Ranka, Garhwa District, Jharkhand, on February 14, 2024,” he recalled.
Eight months later, these issues continue to persist — “a government-created human, economic and institutional tragedy,” he said.
Putting forwards the demands of the Congress, Mr. Ramesh noted that several of them have already found place in the Demand for Grants Report (2024-2025) put forth by the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj.
“MGNREGA was envisioned as a demand-driven scheme, with workdays depending on the individuals applying for work rather than government Budgets. Especially given the worsening economic downturn, the Budget must make adequate financial provision to realise this vision,” Mr. Ramesh asserted.
“Amidst a decade-long crisis of stagnant wages, an increase in MGNREGA wages — as envisioned in the Congress Nyay Patra for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections — assumes renewed importance,” he said.
“The forthcoming Union Budget must increase MGNREGA wages, with the goal of hitting ₹400 per day as a national minimum wage,” Mr. Ramesh said.
The Congress leader also demanded that wages must be paid within the statutory period of 15 days and any delay in payment must be compensated. In FY 2013-14, the minimum average notified wage rate for Mahatma Gandhi NREGA was ₹155, while in FY 2024-25, the minimum average notified wage rate is ₹279.
Published – January 27, 2025 01:19 pm IST
