Chief minister Ashok Gehlot has demanded that the Centre release Rs 1,000 crore to Rajasthan under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) to continue the scheme for the remaining period of the current financial year (2018-19).

In a letter to Union rural development and panchayati raj minister Narendra Singh Tomar, the CM apprised him that under the scheme Rs 543 crore against material component and Rs 260 crore against wages are pending with the central government.

Deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot had written to the union ministry in this regard on January 23 this year, the letter reads and adds that the chief secretary and additional chief secretary had also written letter to the ministry in November 2018 and January 2019.

Gehlot urged the union ministry to release Rs 400 crore to pay wages to labourers and Rs 600 crore for material at the earliest.

He said Rajasthan is among the leading states in the country in implementing the MNREGA. In the current financial year, 42.33 lakh rural families have been given work and 1972.23 lakh man days have been created, he claimed.

The CM said the state has utilised the entire MNREGA funds released for 2018-19. Till date, a total of Rs 4,555 crore has been spent on the scheme, he claimed.

Meanwhile, the officials of state rural development department have been directed to prepare an action plan on priority for the districts where the number of labourers engaged under the MNREGA is less. An official of the department, on condition of anonymity, said that Sachin Pilot, who is handling the department portfolio, has directed the officials to pay special attention on pending work and complete them by March 31, besides ensuring timely wages to the labourers and exploring alternate employment for skilled labourers.

The additional chief secretary too has directed the department officials to speed up the MNREGA work, as of the 21 lakh works, only 7 lakh has been completed till date since the scheme started. The work completion rate has been 33%.

First Published: Feb 20, 2019 15:17 IST