Rising demand for rural jobs, but wages delayed in Chittoor

Tirupati: The number of rural workers seeking employment has risen sharply in Chittoor, but the flow of wages has failed to keep pace, leaving nearly Rs 30 crore in payments pending for more than a month.

The increase in demand for work comes at a time when kharif cultivation has been weak due to El Nino conditions, prompting more rural households to depend on the employment scheme for income.

By the end of September, around 25,000 to 26,000 workers were attending employment works every day, compared with 12,000 to 15,000 during the same period last year. Workers have been waiting for wages for work undertaken since September 1. District officials said the pending wage bill is around Rs 30 crore.

Another Rs 88 crore towards the material component of works taken up in the district last year is also awaiting release, affecting the progress and proposals for fresh works.

The employment programme is now being implemented under the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission Gramin (VB G RAM G), following changes to the earlier system. The revised mechanism was expected to provide more workdays and ensure weekly wage payments. However, workers are yet to see payments being made within the expected timeframe.

The shift in the implementation procedure has also brought technical challenges. Earlier, the labour budget was allocated annually, allowing officials to plan employment across mandals. Under the new system, introduced in July, monthly employment targets are being fixed.

Officials said technical issues have prevented work from being provided at some locations.

Despite the difficulties, employment generation has increased. During the past two months, each family covered under the scheme received an average of 26.65 days of work per month. The daily wage is Rs 255.06.

DWMA Project Director A Ravi Kumar told The Hans India that wage payments pending up to August 31 had been cleared recently. He said Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs) relating to wages due from September 1 had already been uploaded and were awaiting clearance through the Central Government’s SNA Sparsh financial system.

According to PD, it may take two to three weeks for the Centre to clear the payments after the FTOs are uploaded. The district requires around Rs 30 crore every month to meet wage payments under the scheme. District records show that there are 2.24 lakh job cards in Chittoor, while employment has been provided to around 57,000 families. The number of registered wage seekers stands at 77,000, with 15.3 lakh workdays generated so far.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pradeep Vennelakanti

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