Thiruvananthapuram: Budget 2016-17 proposes to scale up the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employ-ment Guarantee Scheme to create community assets, and also to shore up the state’s water security in a big way.
The decision comes in the wake of a central directive in November 2015 to scale up the creation of individual assets and public works related to natural resource management.
“Emphasis will be given for creating assets in rural areas,” the Chief Minister said in the budget speech on Friday. He said MGNREGS would be used to create a host of community resources like anganawadi buildings, sanitary latrines, government schools, panchayat buildings, village markets, godowns and wells.
The budget also announced ‘Jalasura-ksha: Sustainable and Sanitized wells’ programme, which will be integrated with MGNREGS, to recharge and conserve wells, make them fully perennial, sustainable and sanitized. Over 45 lakh open wells form an integral part of water security of Kerala.
Under MGNREGS, 60 percent funds are earmarked for the wage component and 40 percent for material cost. The budget earmarked Rs 50 crore as state’s share for the scheme.
