Karnataka farmers forced to migrate to urban areas, courtesy uncertainty over MGNREGA employment

Persistent wage payment delays and limited number of available persondays have meant that the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is no longer the pastoral lifeline that it once was. Troubled by the mounting agrarian crisis, climate-related uncertainties and stagnating incomes, many farmers in rural Karnataka have been migrating to urban centres out of distress.

“We have to rely only on agricultural labour but that is only available during the kharif and rabi seasons,” says Venkatalakshmi, a farmer from Gandhinagar village in Raichur district. Last year, her household received less than half of the 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in every financial year. Data from the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha reflects a similar trend, with average workdays per household having come down to just 44.62 days in 2024-25 from 52.08 days in 2023-24.

“Issues related to payment have started to become more common. It has been more than two months since I was last paid my wages,” she adds. Under the scheme, workers are legally entitled to payment within 15 days. Delayed payments incur compensation at a rate of 0.05% of the unpaid wages per day, beginning on the 16th day after the muster roll is closed. Data from the MGNREGS dashboard, accessed by DH, reveals that the Government of India owes payments for 10 lakh delayed workdays to workers in Karnataka.

“There are also issues with the photo attendance. Some days that are not recorded at all,” says Virupama, an activist who advocates for MNREGS workers. The app-based National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS) was introduced in 2023. It has since been widely criticised and protested by activists and workers for its technocratic approach in its aim to plug leakages and corruption within the scheme.

The effectiveness of the scheme has been gradually eroding due to insufficient funding over the past few years, according to Abhay Kumar, a national activist belonging to the Grameen Coolie Karmikara Sangathan. “This usually happens by the end of the financial year due to insufficient funding. Frequent delays in payment make the scheme unreliable,” he says.

An official from the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj confirms that delays become more common towards the end of the financial year. “Since there is high demand, the Ministry of Rural Development ends up having to request additional funds from the Department of Revenue. Owing to this, there are delays,” says the official.

Although allocations towards the scheme have increased over the years, they have not kept pace with increasing wages or demand. As a result, over the years, “the delays have started sooner in the year,” they add. Even this periodic increase in wage has been inadequate, according to a report by the parliamentary standing committee. In January, the committee noted that the wages paid under the MGNREGS since 2008 were “inadequate and not in consonance with the rising cost of living”.

Over the years, the government has repeatedly adjusted MGNREGS budget allocations, maintaining that the scheme is demand-driven. However, funding has often lagged behind actual expenditure. In 2020-21, the pandemic-driven surge in work demand pushed the budget from an initial Rs 61,500 crore to a revised Rs 1,11,500 crore. Similar upward revisions followed in subsequent years.

For the 2024-25 financial year, the government has retained allocation towards the scheme at Rs 86,000 crore, effectively cutting funds by 4% compared to the previous year's spending, as per Union Budget documents.

“It seems like there is a targeted effort towards dissolving the scheme by making access more difficult. The downsides are many because distress-related migration to cities may increase,” he says. In urban areas, access to shelter, food and livelihood is not guaranteed. Many also live under perilous circumstances.

Venkatalakshmi, for instance, was forced to migrate to Bengaluru last year when her household did not get the allotted 100 person days. “We usually try to locate relatives in Bengaluru and put up tents or sheds close to them. Those months are very hard,” she says.

A report sponsored by the National Human Rights Commission underscores these living conditions. Blue-collar migrants are found to live in cramped quarters, makeshift tents, and access to healthcare services and education is generally poor. “In states with a high number of seasonal migrants, women and children usually suffer from malnutrition and anaemia. Even welfare benefits distributed at Anganwadis and schools are hard to reach due to migration,” says Abhay.

The intensifying agrarian crisis and climate-related uncertainties have also made urban migration more paramount. In this context, the MGNREGS is particularly important as it provides for an additional stream of income alongside agricultural activity.