Plug loopholes in job scheme: Maiorano

“MGNREGA scheme is doing better where the concentration of the poor is less”

Hans Blomkvist from University of Uppasala, Sweden, (right) and Diego Maiorano, from University of Nottingham, interacting with The Hindu in Visakhapatnam.

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) Scheme is perhaps the biggest ant-poverty scheme in the entire world. It has been a successful project but there are loopholes to be plugged to make it work better, said Diego Maiorano from the School of Politics and International Relations, University of Nottingham.

Prof. Maiorano and Hans Blomkvist from the University of Uppasala, Sweden, have done considerable research on MGNREGA, especially its implementation in states such as Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. The two professors were in Visakhapatnam recently.

HE told

The Hindu that MGNREGA was doing better in richer states where the concentration of poor was less and on an average scale in poorer states where the poor were more in number.

“Reduces poverty”

But having said so, Prof. Maiorano pointed out, “Despite some criticism from certain section of the media, as per the findings of National Council of Applied Economic research (NCAER), NREGA has been responsible for reduction of poverty by 32% and have prevented about 14 million families to fall back into poverty. Now this is a credible finding that proves its success.”

According to him, there is some amount of corruption but by far it has been far less than its earlier ‘Food for Work’ version.

“There is transparency and it can be credited to the system of crediting the money to the bank account of the beneficiaries,” he said.

On the loopholes, Dr. Hans Blomkvist said that MGNREGA funding should be capped. “Since it is based on an Act of the Parliament and the demand for work should be capped,” he said.

Dr Maiorano pointed out that there is a mismatch between the demand for work and work given. “This loophole needs to be checked. There are instances where people demand minimum days of work and that is not being given. Now this is against the spirit of the Act,” he said.