<p>The demand for employment under National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) has witnessed a growing trend, as the number of man-days created under the scheme almost doubled since 2017-18.</p>.<p>Job crunch caused by the pandemic-induced economic crisis has forced many to resort to the scheme.</p>.<p>During the current fiscal alone 10.68 lakh people were included in the scheme - which was one-sixth of the 58.96 lakh beneficiaries under NREGA in the state.</p>.<p>According to data, 13.14 crore man-days was generated in the first nine months of the 2021-22 fiscal, which was higher than the 13-crore target set for the state for the entire fiscal. A similar trend was observed last year, over a surge in demand for jobs in rural areas. </p>.<p>According to Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister K S Eshwarappa, employment generated was higher than the man-days allotted for Karnataka as more people continued to seek work under the scheme.</p>.<p>“Though we had exhausted the man-days allocated to the state for the fiscal, it was increased by 1.4 crore man-days by the Centre due to high demand,” Eshwarappa said, noting that Karnataka had petitioned for more days under the scheme. The Centre has also assured to allocate more funds and man-days if need be, he said.</p>.<p>Data shows that while Karnataka generated 11.18 crore man-days in 2019-20, it was 14.82 crore in 2020-21. The increase in demand for the employment scheme was largely due to reverse migration to villages during the Covid waves over the last two years.</p>.<p>The number of works taken up using NREGA also saw a marked increase from 3.36 lakh works in 2019-20 to 4.03 lakh in 2020-21. During the current fiscal, the number of works taken up till date is 3.87 lakh with three months still left during the year.</p>.<p class="CrossHead"><strong>New job cards</strong></p>.<p>Demand for new job cards continued for the second consecutive year and 4.45 lakh new job cards were distributed this year. These job cards ensured employment to 10.68 lakh people of the state, according to data.</p>.<p>Currently, 31.45 lakh families consisting of 58.96 lakh working members are dependent on the scheme. Of them, 29.15 lakh were women, 4.83 lakh senior citizens and around 22,000 specially abled persons.</p>.<p><strong>Watch latest videos by DH here:</strong></p>
<p>The demand for employment under National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) has witnessed a growing trend, as the number of man-days created under the scheme almost doubled since 2017-18.</p>.<p>Job crunch caused by the pandemic-induced economic crisis has forced many to resort to the scheme.</p>.<p>During the current fiscal alone 10.68 lakh people were included in the scheme - which was one-sixth of the 58.96 lakh beneficiaries under NREGA in the state.</p>.<p>According to data, 13.14 crore man-days was generated in the first nine months of the 2021-22 fiscal, which was higher than the 13-crore target set for the state for the entire fiscal. A similar trend was observed last year, over a surge in demand for jobs in rural areas. </p>.<p>According to Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister K S Eshwarappa, employment generated was higher than the man-days allotted for Karnataka as more people continued to seek work under the scheme.</p>.<p>“Though we had exhausted the man-days allocated to the state for the fiscal, it was increased by 1.4 crore man-days by the Centre due to high demand,” Eshwarappa said, noting that Karnataka had petitioned for more days under the scheme. The Centre has also assured to allocate more funds and man-days if need be, he said.</p>.<p>Data shows that while Karnataka generated 11.18 crore man-days in 2019-20, it was 14.82 crore in 2020-21. The increase in demand for the employment scheme was largely due to reverse migration to villages during the Covid waves over the last two years.</p>.<p>The number of works taken up using NREGA also saw a marked increase from 3.36 lakh works in 2019-20 to 4.03 lakh in 2020-21. During the current fiscal, the number of works taken up till date is 3.87 lakh with three months still left during the year.</p>.<p class="CrossHead"><strong>New job cards</strong></p>.<p>Demand for new job cards continued for the second consecutive year and 4.45 lakh new job cards were distributed this year. These job cards ensured employment to 10.68 lakh people of the state, according to data.</p>.<p>Currently, 31.45 lakh families consisting of 58.96 lakh working members are dependent on the scheme. Of them, 29.15 lakh were women, 4.83 lakh senior citizens and around 22,000 specially abled persons.</p>.<p><strong>Watch latest videos by DH here:</strong></p>
