Senthil Kumar
Rangat, Dec 8: Official hiccups have rendered trouble for hundreds of labourers engaged under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) in the North and Middle Andaman District. Sources claim that for shortage of funds and poor administration, the NREGA workers engaged in various projects have not been disbursed their wages for the last three months, despite a firm guideline of the Act to disburse wages to the workers within 15 days after the completion of the work.
Such delay is now taking toll, recently Mr. S Kotesh, 70 years a NREGA worker and fishermen of Rangat area has committed suicide. His son Mr. S Sankar alleged that due to financial problem his father committed suicide and if the NREGA money would have been released in time, his life could have been saved. Is this an indication for another crisis in near future?
As per the Act, NREGA workers should be provided their wages within 15 days from the end of the work period i.e every week the management should be clear the weekly payment to the daily wage workers. However, due to the hold up of wages, more than 15,000 families in the district are facing hardships. Sources claim that the major delay caused in disbursement of wages is from the Deputy Commissioner Office due to snail pace file works. Moreover, the DC doesn’t take prompt steps to address the issues of poor MNREGA labourers, sources allege.
“It is now more than three months that our hard-earned salaries have been held up by the district administration. Our families are facing hardships due to the inordinate delay in release of wages. More than 15,000 families in various parts of the region have been employed under the NREGA scheme for various projects. But without wages, they are facing innumerable hardships. Besides purchase of food provisions have become a tricky affair with penniless pockets. We are left with no other option than to hold protests to claim our salaries,” say some labourers.
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