Coimbatore: About 2,690 workers from village panchayats turned up to work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee (MGNREGA) Act in the district on Monday. The number of workers has been steadily increasing ever since the district administration kickstarted rural work under the programme.
An official with the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) said, “We are enrolling only workers who are showing willingness to work under the scheme.” The workers are involved in digging pits around coconut trees, creating bunds along farmlands, construction of soak pits and community pits and other construction work. As southwest monsoon is expected to lash the district in a month, the work being done now would be useful to harvest rainwater, he added
Work has also commenced in all village panchayats expect ten panchayats including Athupollachi, Diwansa Pudur, Odanthurai and S Kumarapalayam which are containment zones, the official said. The wage for the workers has been increased from Rs 229 to Rs 256 per day.
Social distancing norms are being ensured at work sites and only 10 to 20 workers are being engaged at a site as compared to about 50 workers earlier, he said.
The DRDA has distributed masks and soaps to all workers who are turning up for employment under the scheme, the official said.
In general, the number of villagers who turn up for work under the scheme is less during summer season as most workers are busy preparing their farmland for southwest monsoon, the official said, pointing out that about 5000 workers had registered before the lockdown.
“We expect that the number would gradually increase in upcoming days,” he added.
An official with the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) said, “We are enrolling only workers who are showing willingness to work under the scheme.” The workers are involved in digging pits around coconut trees, creating bunds along farmlands, construction of soak pits and community pits and other construction work. As southwest monsoon is expected to lash the district in a month, the work being done now would be useful to harvest rainwater, he added
Work has also commenced in all village panchayats expect ten panchayats including Athupollachi, Diwansa Pudur, Odanthurai and S Kumarapalayam which are containment zones, the official said. The wage for the workers has been increased from Rs 229 to Rs 256 per day.
Social distancing norms are being ensured at work sites and only 10 to 20 workers are being engaged at a site as compared to about 50 workers earlier, he said.
The DRDA has distributed masks and soaps to all workers who are turning up for employment under the scheme, the official said.
In general, the number of villagers who turn up for work under the scheme is less during summer season as most workers are busy preparing their farmland for southwest monsoon, the official said, pointing out that about 5000 workers had registered before the lockdown.
“We expect that the number would gradually increase in upcoming days,” he added.
Coronavirus outbreak
Trending Topics
LATEST VIDEOS
More from TOI
Navbharat Times
Featured Today in Travel
Quick Links
Kerala Coronavirus Helpline NumberHaryana Coronavirus Helpline NumberUP Coronavirus Helpline NumberBareilly NewsBhopal NewsCoronavirus in DelhiCoronavirus in HyderabadCoronavirus in IndiaCoronavirus symptomsCoronavirusRajasthan Coronavirus Helpline NumberAditya ThackerayShiv SenaFire in MumbaiAP Coronavirus Helpline NumberArvind KejriwalJammu Kashmir Coronavirus Helpline NumberSrinagar encounter
Get the app