Under MGNREGA, a flagship scheme aimed at enhancing the livelihood security of rural households by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed employment, the Union government has made digital attendance of workers through the National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS) mandatory since January 1, 2023. This new system, requiring uploading of two time-stamped and geo-tagged photographs on the sites that employed more than 20 workers, was started as a pilot project in May 2021 and has now become universal. Furthermore, wages are to be paid to Aadhaar-linked bank accounts. The objective is to bring in greater transparency and reduce corruption by minimising the role of intermediaries for putting the names of the workers in registers and marking their attendance.
The nexus between contractors and government functionaries, operationalised with the passive support of the workers, was resulting in the latter being paid less than their due by allowing them to be relaxed about their attendance at the site or completing the assigned work. Understandably, the goal of asset creation and targeting the vulnerable segments were seriously compromised under the old system.
The difficulties in marking attendance multiple times every day due to connectivity issues and not receiving wages as about 55% of workers do not have their account linked to Aadhaar, has however led now to low turnout for work and reduced off-take under MGNREGA. It is, thus, providing a perverse rationale, justifying post facto reduction of over 30% in its allocation in the latest Union Budget. A segment of the workers has now organised themselves under ‘NREGA Sangharsh Morcha’ and is demanding the scrapping of the system. There are apprehensions that this would result in accelerating outmigration from rural areas
MGNREGA was a great lifesaver during the worst phases of the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to be so in several drought-prone districts even today. It may be noted that many migrants in cities and towns returned to their villages during the pandemic. The 78th round NSS and PLFS data for 2020-21, however, show that the percentage of migrants in rural areas has not gone up since 2007-08. Extremely low wages in the outmigrating districts, combined with poor infrastructure and basic amenities, have made most of these migrants turn once again to the inhospitable urban environment, notwithstanding the problems of living in slums, health hazards and social and political discrimination. Given the significant difference in earnings between their places of origin and destination, it is difficult to argue that MGNREGA would restrain them from migrating out.
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The most vulnerable seek employment under MGNREGA
It is important to note that it is the most vulnerable section of the rural workers, desperately striving for survival and incapable of moving out to other places for long durations, that mostly seek employment under the scheme. The difficulties of coping with the digital attendance system and delays in wage payment, however, are likely to force them to move to nearby villages or urban centres for short durations. Much of this mobility, however, would not get recorded in the official statistical system since NSS or Census considers a duration of six months or more at the place of enumeration necessary for identifying a migrant. Not many among these vulnerable people can or would like to move out for a longer duration as that requires economic affordability and networking.
Academic activists like Jean Dreze have called the new attendance system an assault on the scheme, designed to reduce the demand to match the reduced allocations in recent years. The government’s argument that the new system will plug the massive leakages, mistargeting and corruption has been considered as rhetoric given the workers’ limited access to digital technology and low connectivity in much of rural India. Also, the participatory social audits that can address the problem effectively have been systematically undermined, through under-funding and other means. In many states, the nexus between private contractors, political parties and corrupt functionaries are well known but attempts have not been made to break that through simple monitoring measures.
The concerned ministries, however, have clarified that the new system has been designed to eliminate all malpractices and assured that the current technical issues will be addressed by the NIC. The system is modified to meet the objections raised by the states and civil society. Furthermore, ‘mates’ are being provided access to smartphones and trained to take the responsibility of recording attendance through the NMMS App.
There is no evidence that an exodus has begun or is in the offing in the coming months due to the new system. But there is no doubt that delays in MGNREGA payments and people being excluded from it due to technical, digital and bureaucratic reasons or local politics are disastrous for the poor and vulnerable. They neither have the capacity to migrate nor to meet the logistic requirements of NMMS without proper handholding.
None can take exception to the government trying to plug the leakages and ensuring that middlemen do not corner much of the funds by manipulating the attendance and work reporting system. But this must be done after ensuring that problems like digital connectivity and bureaucratic hurdles are fully addressed as this is linked with the basic survival of the poorest. The exclusion of the vulnerable cannot be defended on the grounds of launching experimental measures to plug corruption.
Amitabh Kundu is a senior fellow of the World Resources Institute.