UP: Job-spinner MNREGS expands wings after tie-up with 11 departments

LUCKNOW: Turning Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) into one of the biggest job-spinners in time of pandemic, the rural development department has tied up with 11 government departments to hammer out 34,265 proposals on Rs 740 crore construction projects.
Rural development department data accessed by TOI reveals of 34,265 proposals sent to district programme officers and district magistrates, 31,068 proposals on projects of over Rs 654 crore have been approved while the rest are in the pipeline.
The move comes even as the state government looks to produce over 60 lakh jobs under MNREGS for migrants, who returned to the state after lockdown was clamped.
The 11 departments roped in for the scheme include minor irrigation, irrigation, forest department, PWD, agriculture department, fisheries, horticulture, sericulture, panchayati raj, integrated watershed management programme (implemented by department of land resources) and animal husbandry.
Additional commissioner, MNREGS, Yogesh Kumar said, the step has been taken as part of convergence programme to accelerate projects and generate more jobs. “Other departments can draw funds under MNREGS to execute projects in their jurisdiction,” he said, adding this also allows MNREGS to expand for execution of developmental projects.
Data shows a maximum of 16,192 proposals worth Rs 333 crore have been sent to PWD, followed by minor irrigation which received as 11308 proposals of Rs 191 crore. Likewise, irrigation department and forest department have received 2,561 and 1,487 proposals for executing construction projects of Rs 112 crore and Rs 48 crore, respectively. The PWD brass has already decided to engage workers under MNREGS for construction of side roads. Likewise, minor irrigation department seeks to dig canals for irrigation under MNREGS.
Sources said, the rural department would soon send a proposal to the ground water department for Atal Bhujal Scheme, which has already received a nod from the chief minister’s office. The scheme was launched by PM Narendra Modi on the birth anniversary of former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee on December 25 last year. The scheme is aimed at improving groundwater management through community participation. At least Rs 6000 crore has already been earmarked for implementation of the scheme for a five-year period (2020-25). “This would be a fresh intervention as far as MNREGS is concerned. A formal roadmap would be rolled out soon,” a rural development official said.