Social audits in Rajasthan villages unearth wage scams

Jaipur, Apr 26 (UNI) A social audit of the state-government sponsored 'Employment scheme' in Rajasthan's Dungarpur district, has unearthed a scam of Rs 6 lakh in daily wage payments.

The month-long campaign organised by Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and 165 other NGOs to make labourers employed under the National Rural Employment (NREG) Scheme more aware about their rights, ended yesterday.

At a public hearing held in Balota village, it was found that wages were being taken in the name of labourers, who were actually away working in Kuwait and Rajkot in Gujarat. Such cases also came out in the open where wages were being taken in the name of blind and handicapped labourers.

District Collector Manju Rajpal said three complaints regarding fake wage payments have been received which are being investigated.

Ms Rajpal said around Rs 48 crore has already been spent in one district under the NREG, while a demand for Rs 32 crore has been placed before the state government.

The state government began the NREG to stem the migration of labourers in tribal districts in south Rajasthan to bigger cities like Ahmedabad and Mumbai to find work. The NREG implemented in six districts of Rajasthan gurantees 100 days of employment to landless labourers.

According to government sources, five lakh labourers have already been employed under the scheme. Dungarpur district alone employs 1.20 lakh workers under the scheme.

Yojna Board's member D. N Yugandhar said the Panchayati Raj and Gram Sabhas should keep an eye on the money coming in from the state government to prevent such wage rackets.

Social worker Aruna Roy said the government should provide security to those who have brought forth these illegal rackets under the NREG, so that the common people get bolden to speak against the wrongdoings.

The labourers working under the scheme, however, complain of too much work for too little. A labourer usually gets Rs 73 for a full day's work. Unilke other government schemes, the workers are not paid for the hours they put in but for tasks they complete in a day.

A usual day work includes digging huge plots of land and putting the soil away on another plot some distance away.

But labourers say digging in such rocky and barren terrain is hard with the sun beating down on them in this sweltering summer.

The state government has decided to reduce the specified tasks by 10 per cent for month of May and 20 per cent by June.

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