<p>Centre has allowed the State Governments to restart works under the rural job scheme from next week to open up livelihood opportunities in the villages. </p>.<p>The works under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) will be exempted from the nationwide lockdown from Monday. The move is apparently aimed at easing the distress in the rural economy caused by the curbs imposed to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.</p>.<p>The Centre, however, asked the State Governments to ensure strict adherence to the social distancing norms in order to protect the workers from the COVID-19 virus. The villagers would also have to wear face masks always while participating in the MGNREGS works. </p>.<p>“All district and state-level authorities must be sensitized to imperatives of maintaining social distancing, use of home-made protective face covers and repeated washing of hands with soap and water,” Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary of the Ministry of Rural Development, wrote to the senior officials of the state governments on Wednesday.</p>.<p>Soon after the Union Government on March 24, imposed the lockdown as well as travel and transport curbs to contain the pandemic, the implementation of the MGNREGS was officially suspended in several states. </p>.<p>The lockdown, which was originally scheduled to end on April 14, has now been extended till May 3. But the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday issued revised guidelines for the extended period. It also announced certain exemptions that would come into effect next Monday. The works under the MGNREGS has now been included in the list of exemptions from the lockdown.</p>.<p>With the Centre now focusing on agriculture and allied sectors to start the process of bringing the economy back on track, it asked the State Governments to prioritize works related to irrigation and water conservation while selecting the jobs to be done under the MGNREGS. The other Central and State schemes in irrigation and water conservation may also be allowed to be implemented (during the lockdown) and suitably dovetailed with the MGNREGS works, according to the MHA guidelines.</p>.<p>The MGNREGS – mandated by Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act – is designed to guarantee at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every rural household having adults ready to do unskilled manual work.</p>.<p>With tens of thousands of jobless migrant workers fleeing the cities in the wake of the lockdown and returning to the villages, the demand for the MGNREGS job is likely to go up in the coming months.</p>.<p>The implementation of the MGNREGS will continue to remain prohibited in the COVID-19 containment zone. “It is also reiterated that if any new area is included in the category of (COVID-19) containment zone, the MGNREGS activities allowed in that area till the time of its categorization as a containment zone will be immediately suspended,” Bhushan added in his letter to the State Government officials.</p>
<p>Centre has allowed the State Governments to restart works under the rural job scheme from next week to open up livelihood opportunities in the villages. </p>.<p>The works under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) will be exempted from the nationwide lockdown from Monday. The move is apparently aimed at easing the distress in the rural economy caused by the curbs imposed to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.</p>.<p>The Centre, however, asked the State Governments to ensure strict adherence to the social distancing norms in order to protect the workers from the COVID-19 virus. The villagers would also have to wear face masks always while participating in the MGNREGS works. </p>.<p>“All district and state-level authorities must be sensitized to imperatives of maintaining social distancing, use of home-made protective face covers and repeated washing of hands with soap and water,” Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary of the Ministry of Rural Development, wrote to the senior officials of the state governments on Wednesday.</p>.<p>Soon after the Union Government on March 24, imposed the lockdown as well as travel and transport curbs to contain the pandemic, the implementation of the MGNREGS was officially suspended in several states. </p>.<p>The lockdown, which was originally scheduled to end on April 14, has now been extended till May 3. But the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday issued revised guidelines for the extended period. It also announced certain exemptions that would come into effect next Monday. The works under the MGNREGS has now been included in the list of exemptions from the lockdown.</p>.<p>With the Centre now focusing on agriculture and allied sectors to start the process of bringing the economy back on track, it asked the State Governments to prioritize works related to irrigation and water conservation while selecting the jobs to be done under the MGNREGS. The other Central and State schemes in irrigation and water conservation may also be allowed to be implemented (during the lockdown) and suitably dovetailed with the MGNREGS works, according to the MHA guidelines.</p>.<p>The MGNREGS – mandated by Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act – is designed to guarantee at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every rural household having adults ready to do unskilled manual work.</p>.<p>With tens of thousands of jobless migrant workers fleeing the cities in the wake of the lockdown and returning to the villages, the demand for the MGNREGS job is likely to go up in the coming months.</p>.<p>The implementation of the MGNREGS will continue to remain prohibited in the COVID-19 containment zone. “It is also reiterated that if any new area is included in the category of (COVID-19) containment zone, the MGNREGS activities allowed in that area till the time of its categorization as a containment zone will be immediately suspended,” Bhushan added in his letter to the State Government officials.</p>
