New Delhi, Feb 2 (IANS) The rural employment guarantee act has lessened people's migration from villages to cities for work and the government would work towards strengthening the scheme, Rural Development Minister Birender Singh said Monday.
"Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is a scheme which will be strengthened. We will not do anything to dilute it," Birender Singh said at a function to mark the completion of 10 years of the flagship programme.
The scheme was launched by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government during its first term to tremendous electoral advantage.
Singh said that for his ministry, the biggest job of MGNREGA is to generate employment among the rural poor. "Assets which are created are useful for the villages but it comes second in the list of priorities after employment generation."
Asserting that his ministry wants to focus on convergence of employment guarantee and asset creation, the minister said that assets thus created should have a durability of 60-70 years and not just three to four years.
He promised to allocate the maximum funds for the programme and blamed the state governments for delay in payment to beneficiaries.
Economists and activists alike had protested the government's reported move to dilute the programme last year. But the NDA government had clarified in parliament that there would be no whittling down of funds for the programme.
Vaccination of people 18 and older in the country will start from May 1. Registration for this ha
BJP accepts defeat with humility: Prasad
New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) The BJP accepts its "massive defeat" in Delhi assembly elections with
AAP ahead of BJP, Congress in Delhi
New Delhi, Feb 10 (IANS) The AAP led in five seats and the BJP and the Congress in one seat eac
Flood horror haunts Srinagar, people abandon homes, shops
Srinagar, March 30 (IANS) Nisar Hussain, 65, who lives in the Gogjibagh residential area of Sri
E-commerce sector giant Amazon can lay off about 10,000 people. According to the New York Times r
Apple iPhone 5G Service: 5G service has been rolled out in India. Airtel and Jio companies have l
Union Minister of State (Petroleum and Natural Gas) Rameshwar Teli has blamed the tax for the ris
Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly has announced his new innings on Thursday. The 49-year-old f
India Lockdown Day 6: Govt Zeroes In On 10 Hotspots
देश भर में COVID-19 मामलों की संख्या 1,251 तक प
Israel-Hamas war continues for the 15th day. The Israeli army is continuously targeting Hamas pos