Port Blair, July 28: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is Indian labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the ‘right to work’. It aims to enhance livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.
A mini pond had been constructed on the land of Ms Naw Ahmay of Webi village, under Gram Panchayat Rampur, Mayabunder Block, North & Middle Andaman District. In this case, the earthwork for the construction of the mini pond was undertaken using unskilled manual work amounting to Rs 1,90,298/- (Rupees One Lakh Ninety Thousand Two Hundred Ninety-Eight Only) during the FY 2021-22. Most of the MGNREGA labourers engaged in this work were females, and they executed their work incredibly. The technical guidance was obtained from the Department of Agriculture and the implementing agency was Gram Panchayat Rampur.
The pond plays an important role in storing the excess supply of water during the rainy season. In irrigation, it will help agricultural crop growth, reduce the effect of inadequate rainfall. The pond will also help in improving the aquaculture (breeding, rearing and harvesting of fish) in the village. The most important benefit from this construction activity was to provide employment to labourers under MGNREGA.
A concerted effort has been made to make sustainable livelihoods by providing wage employment during times of need. Water conservation has been given due priority as several villages face water scarcity with the objective to uplift the rural poor people by making them wage employed and resolve water crisis.
