Skip to main content

Waiting for months, even years in some cases, for NREGA wages: Complain participants in Delhi dharna

By Our Representative
Thousands of National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) workers from about eleven states assembled at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on the second day on Tuesday for dharna called by NREGA Sangharsh Morcha, a national apex body of the organizations fighting for the implementation of the rural jobs guarantee scheme.
The day began with a review of the struggle for employment guarantee, from the early demand for an employment guarantee scheme in Maharashtra in the early 1970s to recent efforts to save the NREGA from being diluted or dismantled. 
Nikhil Dey of the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, who was actively involved in the campaign for a national employment guarantee act in 2004 and 2005, recalled the main slogan of this campaign and explained how it captures the main purpose of NREGA: “Har haath ko kaam do, kaam ka pura daam do”.
He recalled a less well-remembered slogan: “Trishul naheen, talwar naheen, rozgar chahiye”. In those days, soon after the Gujarat massacres of 2002, when the poison of communalism was spreading to other states as well, the demand for NREGA was partly an effort to counter that trend with a united struggle for the right to livelihood, he suggested.
Close to 12 years after the NREGA came into force, workers’ rights continue to be routinely violated, participants opined, even as enumerating various types of infringement on their rights, especially related to the payment of wages. Higher wages, timely payment and compensation for delays in wage payments emerged as three critical demands of the dharna.
NREGA wages have stagnated in real terms since 2009, when the Act was delinked from the Minimum Wages Act, activists said. Two years ago, the Mahendra Dev committee report recommended re-setting NREGA wages with 2014 as the base, to make them consistent with state-specific minimum wages (at least in the base year). 
The Finance Ministry, however, rejected this recommendation. More recently, another committee report cited in Indian Express apparently recommended continuing with the current practice of raising NREGA wages each year only to the extent that prices increase, it was pointed out.
Anuradha Talwar of Pashchim Banga Khet Mazdoor Samiti pointed towards the Morcha’s demand of increasing the NREGA wage to Rs 600 a day, which roughly equals the monthly salary of the lowest paid government employees, as per the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission.
Anjali Kumari from Basia block in Jharkhand brought a bag of one-rupee coins collected there from NREGA workers, who are protesting against the measly increase of NREGA wages in Jharkhand this year (Rs 167-168 per day) by returning one rupee to the Prime Minister.
Timely payment of wages was another united demand of the dharna. NREGA wages are supposed to be paid within 15 days, but testimony after testimony showed that timely payment is the exception more than the rule. 
Participants explained that they had been waiting for months, even years in some cases, for their NREGA wages. The central government claims that 70-80% of wages are paid on time, but this is based on an incomplete calculation of the delays, which stops at the point where a Fund Transfer Order (FTO) is sent by the local administration. 
Very often, there is a long gap between the FTO and the actual crediting of workers’ accounts. According to a recent study, if delays are calculated until the crediting of workers’ accounts, then the proportion of wages paid on time (i.e. within 15 days) is more like 20% than the official 70-80%.
As far as compensation is concerned, it was noted, the current rate of 0.05% (of the amount due) per day of delay is an insult to the dignity of NREGA workers. Even that measly amount is not paid, most of the time. Workers are demanding automatic compensation at an enhanced rate of at least 0.5% per day.
Other issues raised related to the demand for an urban employment guarantee scheme, enhanced days of employment under the NREGA, the growing harmful centralisation within the programmes, and an increase in the budget allocation to honour employment as per demand.
Representatives from Sahayta Kendras in Kisko Jharkhand spoke of their struggle to get workers their legal entitlement to an unemployment allowance. Through efforts like theirs, Rs. 2.5 lakh has been paid in unemployment allowance to 150 workers in Jharkhand.
NREGA workers also spoke about their efforts to organise and the repression they often faced in response to these efforts. Nearly three hundred had come from Muzaffarpur (Bihar), where workers’ efforts to organise have faced severe repression in recent months. 
Sanjay Sahni, founder of Samaj Parivartan Shakti Sangathan in Muzaffarpur, explained how seven false FIRs have already been lodged against him and some of his comrades. For good measure, NREGA functionaries who resent SPSS’s efforts to empower NREGA workers have agitated relentlessly for his arrest. 
But Sanjay and his comrades said they were undeterred – they are planning yet another indefinite dharna in Muzaffarpur. this time of the payment of unemployment allowances.
The dharna ended with delegations from the Morcha visiting offices of political parties to voice their demands.

Comments

TRENDING

Reducing emission? India among top nations whose coal as energy source going up

By NS Venkataraman*  The State of the Global Climate report by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed that the year 2023 was the warmest year on record, with the global temperature of 1.4 degree celsius above pre-industrial 1850-1900 base line.

Lockdown 'total failure' of science more than of politics: Open letter on 4th anniversary

Counterview Desk  In an open letter to fellow academicians, scientists and medical practitioners in India, marking the fourth anniversary of India's lockdown (25 March 2024), the Managing Committee* of the Universal Health Organisation (UHO) has insisted on the need to "repair two years of immense damage to science".

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam*  Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

Magnetic, stunning, Protima Bedi 'exposed' malice of sexual repression in society

By Harsh Thakor*  Protima Bedi was born to a baniya businessman and a Bengali mother as Protima Gupta in Delhi in 1949. Her father was a small-time trader, who was thrown out of his family for marrying a dark Bengali women. The theme of her early life was to rebel against traditional bondage. It was extraordinary how Protima underwent a metamorphosis from a conventional convent-educated girl into a freak. On October 12th was her 75th birthday; earlier this year, on August 18th it was her 25th death anniversary.

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

'Wrong direction': Paris NGO regrets MNC ArcelorMittal still using coal-based steel

By Rajiv Shah  A new report by Paris-based non-governmental research and campaigning organization, Reclaim Finance, has blamed the MNC ArcelorMittal – formed in 2006 following the takeover and merger of the western European steel maker Arcelor (Spain, France, and Luxembourg) by Indian-owned Mittal Steel – for using use “climate destructive” metallurgical coal for its projects in India.

'Flawed' argument: Gandhi had minimal role, naval mutinies alone led to Independence

Counterview Desk Reacting to a Counterview  story , "Rewiring history? Bose, not Gandhi, was real Father of Nation: British PM Attlee 'cited'" (January 26, 2016), an avid reader has forwarded  reaction  in the form of a  link , which carries the article "Did Atlee say Gandhi had minimal role in Independence? #FactCheck", published in the site satyagrahis.in. The satyagraha.in article seeks to debunk the view, reported in the Counterview story, taken by retired army officer GD Bakshi in his book, “Bose: An Indian Samurai”, which claims that Gandhiji had a minimal role to play in India's freedom struggle, and that it was Netaji who played the crucial role. We reproduce the satyagraha.in article here. Text: Nowadays it is said by many MK Gandhi critics that Clement Atlee made a statement in which he said Gandhi has ‘minimal’ role in India's independence and gave credit to naval mutinies and with this statement, they concluded the whole freedom struggle.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Attack on foreign students: Gujarat varsity's reputation, ranking at stake, say academics

Counterview Desk  Expressing anguish over the attack on international students in Gujarat University hostels, a letter claimed to have been signed by 122 current and former academics has asked the Gujarat Vice Chancellor, Dr Neerja Gupta, to provide emotional support to the attacked students and to ensure their physical safety.  

As double engine takes backseat in Odisha, BJP is pitted against 'firmly rooted' BJD

By Sudhansu R Das  BJP has got 25 years to build its party base in Odisha. After 25 years, it felt helpless and insecure to fight elections on its own strength. The party was almost crazy to have an alliance with the ruling BJD in Odisha.  Looking for alliance at the time of election shows that the party has not groomed its grassroots level workers into potential leaders.  The state BJP leaders woke up and convinced the Central leaders that they are capable of going solo; the alliance was stillborn. The question is can BJP defeat BJD which is firmly rooted in Odisha after launching piles of populist programs in the state.