Tripura CM Manik Sarkar urges PM Narendra Modi to increase MGNREGA allocation

Agartala: Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar has sought intervention of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the reduction of allocation of money for implementing MGNREGA in the state.

There should not be any impediment in granting proper allocation for implementation of MGNREGA, but the work is being hampered in the state due to reduced budget by the Union Rural Development Ministry, Sarkar said in a letter to Modi yesterday.

Sarkar said the state government had expected that the wages in the MGNREGA would be increased and the radius of works would be further increased for creating assets in the rural areas.

"But we are receiving information that the Government of India would change the basic structure of the MGNREGA and would confine its works only to a few specific areas, as a result of which the people from rural areas, particularly of Schedule Tribe, Schedule Cast and minority community would be looser," he said.

MGNREGA had benefited many people, created permanent assets and strengthened the rural economy of the state, he said.

The Centre had allocated Rs 1406.96 crore for the year 2014-15 in labour budget and the state had made a plan accordingly, but the central government recently informed the state that it would receive only Rs 652.01 crore for the same period which is only 46 percent of the earlier allocation, he said.

Tripura topped for consecutive three times in the scheme, but its allocation was reduced. It was learnt from the website of the union rural ministry that the allocation was increased in Rajasthan, Gujarat, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, the Chief Minister said.

Sarkar urged the Prime Minister to immediately intervene in the matter and give necessary directions to the rural ministry to deal the matter sympathetically and increase the labour budget.