- Both Congress-ruled and BJP-led states have joined hands to demand MGNREGS’ ambit be widened
- States have demanded that infrastructure works be included in MGNREGA
NEW DELHI : State governments across the political spectrum have asked the Centre to expand the scope of the national rural jobs programme, as they try to accommodate millions of migrant workers returning from towns and cities amid the coronavirus lockdown.
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Interestingly, states ruled by both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), as well as Opposition parties, have called upon the Union government to make the changes. According to ministers of various states, who sought anonymity, the demands include increasing the number of workdays under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), and expanding its scope by including several types of labour.
While the data on the number of migrants returning to states is still being calculated by respective state governments, the extent of the problem can be understood from the fact that the worst affected states, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, have seen over three million labourers returning home.
Source: livemint
