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Kolkata, Nov 14 (IANS) After facing negative consequences of stopping central funds for the 100-day job scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) due to alleged corruption in the implementation of the scheme, the West Bengal government is now focusing on proper mapping of job cards under the scheme.
Amid the busy schedule of state government employees due to the ongoing Special Intensive Review (SIR) by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in West Bengal, the State Panchayat Affairs and Rural Development Department has started the process of mapping job cards for the 100-day job scheme under MNREGA.
Under this mapping exercise, job cards are linked to the Aadhar cards of the respective job-card holders and immediately after linking, the relevant details are uploaded on the MNREGA website.
This is done to ensure that only genuine beneficiaries will receive the money paid under the scheme. This will also bring transparency in the system and eliminate the possibility of misuse of central funds paid under the MNREGA scheme.
Recall that the Central Government had stopped making payments under the MNREGA scheme for the last three years, after which a political tussle started between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP.
The Center claimed that payment of funds was stopped amid massive corruption in the implementation of the scheme.
However, in June this year, the Calcutta High Court, acting on a petition filed by Paschim Banga Khet Mazur Samiti, a union of agricultural workers in the state, directed the NDA government at the Center to pay the pending MNREGA funds to West Bengal.
The Calcutta High Court then said that if necessary, the central government can set conditions for payment of MNREGA funds to West Bengal, but cannot stop payments in this regard.
In July this year, the Central Government had challenged the order of the Calcutta High Court in the Supreme Court. Last month, a division bench of the apex court comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta upheld the Calcutta High Court order and refused to interfere in the case.
–IANS
Source/Red