Follow AP on NREGP online monitoring: Montek

Hyderabad, Feb 2: Taking a cue from Andhra Pradesh, all states should go for online monitoring of the prestigious National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (NREGP) to ensure greater transparency and accountability, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said today.

''Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram is very much impressed with the implementation of the NREGP in Andhra Pradesh through online monitoring,'' he said while participating in a video conference with district collectors of the state.

Dr Ahluwalia said he would urge all the Chief Ministers during their forthcoming meetings to discuss plan size of each state to go for online monitoring of the project.

''I will write to all the Chief Ministers to adopt the Andhra Pradesh model,'' he said.

Pointing out that a large number of central schemes were being implemented in the states involving thousands of crores of rupees, he stressed the need for convergence of schemes so that the benefit reached the targeted people.

Expressing happiness that more number of women were seeking employment under the programme, he asked the district collectors to ensure that baby care centres were started for them.

Earlier, Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, in his opening remarks, said online monitoring of the programme did not leave any scope for misuse. One tank in each village of the 13 districts was identified for conserving water at the same time providing wage employment to labourers for a minimum of 100 days.

Rural Development Minister D Srinivas said with the help of software developed by the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), all records pertaining to the implementation of the programme were available on the internet.

All the NGOs and others concerned could access information relating to number of works done and number of persons to whom wages were paid among other things.

Mr Srinivas also urged the Centre to expand the project to cover at least five more drought-prone districts in the state by next year.

Explaining the salient features of NREGP in Andhra Pradesh, Union Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh, who was closely monitoring the implementation of the programme, said the schedule of rates for the works done by the labourers had been completely reworked taking the ground realitiesinto account for the first time in the country in Andhra Pradesh. Subsequently, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu followed suit.

A mechanism had been put in place in Andhra Pradesh for conducting social audit independently.

UNI