New Delhi: The government on Thursday revised wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) with hikes ranging between four and 10 per cent for different states. The wage revision was notified by the Union Rural Development Ministry on March 27 after clearance from the Election Commission as the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) is in force for the Lok Sabha polls.
The increases were made on the 2023 wage rates under a scheme that is aimed at enhancing livelihood security of households in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.
Haryana has the highest wage rate for unskilled workers under the scheme at Rs.374 a day, while Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland have the lowest at Rs.234. The wage rate in three panchayats of Sikkim — Gnathang, Lachung and Lachen — is Rs 374 a day.
The hike in the wage rate in Goa was highest in the country at Rs. 34 and the per day payment now stands at Rs.356 in the state, according to the notification. In Andhra Pradesh, it was increased by Rs.28 a day and the wage rate is now Rs.300.
The increase for Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand was the lowest at Rs.7 and the wage rate in both the states is Rs.237 a day to workers under MGNREGS. The wage rate in West Bengal has been increased to Rs.250 (increase of Rs.13), in Tamil Nadu to Rs.319 (increase of Rs.25), in Telangana to Rs.300 (increase of Rs.28) and in Bihar to Rs.228 (increase of Rs.17). Though Haryana tops in terms of wage rate, the increase is only
around four per cent. Overall, the hikes vary between four and 10 per cent. Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka and Telangana have registered an around 10 per cent iincrease, an analysis of the data mentioned in the notification shows.
In a report tabled in Parliament earlier this year, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj had pointed out the high range of variation in MGNREGS wages across states. It had also said that the wages were inadequate and not in consonance with the rising cost of living. The panel also quoted a report of the Central Government Committee on minimum wages, Anoop Satpathy Committee, had recommended that the wages under MGNREGA should be Rs.375 a day.
