GoI's 'derisively low' budget allocation to further weaken rural jobs lifeline NREGA

Counterview Desk
Well-known advocacy group, NREGA Sangharsh Morcha, expressing its “deep disappointment” at what it calls “ridiculously low budget allocation for implementing the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), has said that the decrease of the rural development budget by 12% suggests the Government of India (GoI) has once again failed millions of its rural citizens who depend on the rural employment guarantee programme for meeting their life needs.
Asking GoI to “take necessary actions within a month to allocate adequate funds for the programme”, a statement by the NGO says, “Since 2015-16, the annual budget allocation has never been sufficient to provide work to all those seeking employment under the programme. In fact, every year about 80-90% of the budget gets exhausted within the first 6 months, resulting in heavy slowdown of work on the ground.”

Text:

Notwithstanding the rural distress, implementing the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) is a legal obligation of the Central government. However, the demand-driven nature of the Act has been repeatedly stifled in letter and spirit. By severe rationing of funds, it has been made a supply driven programme.
February 1 was NREGA diwas, and while we are supposed to be celebrating the idea of rural employment guarantee, we are deeply pained that the programme is systematically undermined by ridiculously low budget allocation.
The total allocation outlay for the ministry of rural development has decreased by 12% in the Union Budget 2022-23, adding on to the existing distress of the rural economy. While for NREGA, despite revised estimates for the current financial year coming in at around Rs 98,000 crore, the budgetary allocation has stayed the same as last year, at Rs 73,000 crore. Out of this, about Rs 18,350 crore are pending liabilities from previous years. Therefore, only about Rs 54,650 crore is available for next year.
If the government wants to provide legal guarantee of work to all the active job card holding households, which is 9.94 crore, then considering the current budgetary estimate, it will only be able to provide some 16 days at per person per day average cost of Rs 334.
Since 2015-16, the annual budget allocation has never been sufficient to provide work to all those seeking employment under the programme. In fact, every year about 80-90% of the budget gets exhausted within the first 6 months, resulting in heavy slowdown of work on the ground. The government has not been able to provide employment to all active job card holding families due to inadequate budget allocation.
It is well known that NREGA has served as a lifeline for millions of distressed households in the last couple of years and helped rural India cope with the unprecedented unemployment caused by the unilaterally imposed national lockdown in FY 2020-21. It has almost worked as a vaccine for unemployment in rural India which is still struggling to recover from enormous loss of lives and livelihoods.

NREGA has worked as a vaccine for unemployment in rural India which is still struggling to recover from enormous loss of lives and livelihoods

While in FY 2020-21 the Central government ended up spending Rs 1.11 lakh crore for a record 11 crore workers from 7.5 crore households who worked under NREGA, in FY 2021-22, a 34% reduction in budget allocation caused much lesser employment generation on ground.
The government later on added a supplementary budget of Rs 25,000 crore in view of the growing need for work across rural India. As of now 9.75 crore workers from 6.74 crore households have worked in NREGA this financial year despite frequent interruptions in implementation due to great delays in fund release from the centre.
We had recommended in our pre-budget note that no less than Rs 3.62 lakh crore will be needed to ensure maximum employment generation for all active job cardholding families. The Government has once again failed millions of its rural citizens who depend on the rural employment guarantee programme for meeting their life needs.
We, members of NREGA Sangharsh Morcha express our deep disappointment at this ridiculously low budget allocation for NREGA and we urge that the central government should take necessary actions within a month to allocate adequate funds for the programme.
We also expect quick action to strengthen social audits across the nation and to ensure that independent social audits are regularized in all states, findings are put in public domain and timely actions are ensured against each irregularity.

Comments

From plagiarism to proxy exams: Galgotias and systemic failure in education

By Sandeep Pandey* Shock is being expressed at Galgotias University being found presenting a Chinese-made robotic dog and a South Korean-made soccer-playing drone as its own creations at the recently held India AI Impact Summit 2026, a global event in New Delhi. Earlier, a UGC-listed journal had published a paper from the university titled “Corona Virus Killed by Sound Vibrations Produced by Thali or Ghanti: A Potential Hypothesis,” which became the subject of widespread ridicule. Following the robotic dog controversy coming to light, the university has withdrawn the paper. These incidents are symptoms of deeper problems afflicting the Indian education system in general. Galgotias merely bit off more than it could chew.

Farewell to Saleem Samad: A life devoted to fearless journalism

By Nava Thakuria* Heartbreaking news arrived from Dhaka as the vibrant city lost one of its most active and committed citizens with the passing of journalist, author and progressive Bangladeshi national Saleem Samad. A gentleman who always had issues to discuss with anyone, anywhere and at any time, he passed away on 22 February 2026 while undergoing cancer treatment at Dhaka Medical College Hospital. He was 74.

From ancient wisdom to modern nationhood: The Indian story

By Syed Osman Sher South of the Himalayas lies a triangular stretch of land, spreading about 2,000 miles in each direction—a world of rare magic. It has fired the imagination of wanderers, settlers, raiders, traders, conquerors, and colonizers. They entered this country bringing with them new ethnicities, cultures, customs, religions, and languages.

The 'glass cliff' at Galgotias: How a university’s AI crisis became a gendered blame game

By Mohd. Ziyaullah Khan* “She was not aware of the technical origins of the product and in her enthusiasm of being on camera, gave factually incorrect information.” These were the words used in the official press release by Galgotias University following the controversy at the AI Impact Summit in Delhi. The statement came across as defensive, petty, and deeply insensitive.

Conversion laws and national identity: A Jesuit response response to the Hindutva narrative

By Rajiv Shah A recent book, " Luminous Footprints: The Christian Impact on India ", authored by two Jesuit scholars, Dr. Lancy Lobo and Dr. Denzil Fernandes , seeks to counter the current dominant narrative on Indian Christians , which equates evangelisation with conversion, and education, health and the social services provided by Christians as meant to lure -- even force -- vulnerable sections into Christianity.

Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov, the artist who survived Stalin's cultural purges

By Harsh Thakor* Sergei Vasilyevich Gerasimov (September 14, 1885 – April 20, 1964) was a Soviet artist, professor, academician, and teacher. His work was posthumously awarded the Lenin Prize, the highest artistic honour of the USSR. His paintings traced the development of socialist realism in the visual arts while retaining qualities drawn from impressionism. Gerasimov reconciled a lyrical approach to nature with the demands of Soviet socialist ideology.

Development vs community: New coal politics and old conflicts in Madhya Pradesh

By Deepmala Patel* The Singrauli region of Madhya Pradesh, often described as “India’s energy capital,” has for decades been a hub of coal mining and thermal power generation. Today, the Dhirouli coal mine project in this district has triggered widespread protests among local communities. In recent years, the project has generated intense controversy, public opposition, and significant legal and social questions. This is not merely a dispute over one mine; it raises a larger question—who pays the price for energy development? Large corporate beneficiaries or the survival of local communities?

Development at what cost? The budget's blind spot for the environment

By Raj Kumar Sinha* The historical ills in the relationship between capital and the environment have now manifested in areas commonly referred to as the "environmental crisis." This includes global warming, the destruction of the ozone layer, the devastation of tropical forests, mass mortality of fish, species extinction, loss of biodiversity, poison seeping into the atmosphere and food, desertification, shrinking water supplies, lack of clean water, and radioactive pollution.

Public money, private profits: Crop insurance scheme as goldmine for corporates

By Vikas Meshram The farmer in India is not merely a food provider; he is the soul of the nation. For centuries, enduring natural calamities and bearing debt generation after generation while remaining loyal to the soil, this community now finds itself trapped in a different kind of crisis. In February 2016, the Modi government launched the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) with the stated objective of freeing farmers from the shackles of debt. It was an ambitious attempt to provide a strong safety net to cultivators repeatedly devastated by excessive rainfall, drought, and hailstorms.

Search This Blog