SOME GOVERNMENT PROGRAMMES

Twenty Point Programme

The Twenty Point Programme was initially launched by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975 and was subsequently restructured in 1982 and again on 1986. With the introduction of new policies and programmes it has been finally restructured in 2006 and it has been in operation at present. The Programmes and Schemes under TPP-2006 are in harmony with the priorities contained in the National Common Minimum Programme, the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations and SAARC Social Charter. The restructured Programme, called Twenty Point Programme – 2006 (TPP-2006), was approved by the Cabinet on 5th October, 2006 and operated w.e.f 1.4.2007.

Objective:
The basic objective of the 20-Point Programme is to eradicate poverty and to improve the quality of life of the poor and the under privileged population of the country. The programme covers various Socio-economic aspects like poverty, employment, education, housing, health, agriculture and land reforms, irrigation, drinking water, protection and empowerment of weaker sections, consumer protection, environment etc.
The 20 points of the Programme and its 66 items have been carefully designed and selected to achieve the above objectives.

The 20 Point Program Consisted following:

1. Attack on rural poverty
2. Strategy for Rained agriculture
3. Better use of irrigation water
4. Bigger harvest
5. Enforcement of Land Reforms
6. Special Programs for rural labour
7. Clean drinking water
8. Health for all
9. two child norm
10. expansion of education
11. Justice for SC / ST
12. Equality for women
13. New Opportunities for women
14. Housing for the people
15. Improvement for slums
16. New Strategy for Forestry
17. Protection of environment
18. concern for the consumer
19. Energy for the villages
20. A responsive administration

The TPP further restructured in 2006 has following Points:

1. Poverty eradication
2. power to people
3. Support to farmers
4. Labour welfare
5. Food security
6. Clean drinking water
7. Housing for all
8. Health for all
9. Education for all
10. Welfare of SC/ ST/ OBC and minorities
11. Women welfare
12. Child welfare
13. Youth Development
14. Improvement of slums
15. Environment protection and afforestation
16. Social security
17. Rural Roads
18. Energising of rural areas
19. Development of Backward areas
20. IT enabled and e-governance

The monitoring of the programme at the centre has been assigned to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India. The management information system relating to Twenty Point developed by the Ministry consists of a monthly Progress Report (MPR) and yearly Review of the Programme, Point-wise, Item-wise and State-wise. The monthly report covers progress on the implementation of the programme for 20 crucial points for which there is pre-set physical targets and the Yearly Review presents an analytical review of the performance of all the items under the programme.

Among the 20 points and 66 items mentioned earlier, 25 items are monitored on monthly basis. In the Monthly Progress Reports, prepared and published by the Central Nodal Department, ranking among States are being prepared and published depending on the percentage of achievements against targets of 20 ranking items/parameters (in case of West Bengal). Up til now, this Department has received and furnished consolidated MPR, in the prescribed format, for the month of January ‘2008. The list of ranking items and their physical progress reports against targets are furnished below for better comprehension of the subject. It is pertinent to mention here that among the ranking 20 items/parameters, the monthly reports for three Items are being directly submitted to the central Nodal Department by the concerned implementing Departments. This State Nodal Department then sends reports for the following 17 items parameters.
1. Total Swarojgaries Assisted under SGSY (Panchayat Department & RD)
2. SHGs to whom income Generating activities provided
3. Rural Housing – Indira Awas Yojna (Housing Departments)
4. EWS/LIG Houses in urban Areas
Rural Areas
5. (a) Accelerated Rural water supply programme
(b) Slipped back habitations with water quality problems
Immunization of children
6. (a) Routine Immunisation (Health Department*)
(b) Pulse Polio Immunisation
7. SC Families Assisted (Backward Classes welfare Department)
8. Universalising of ICDS Scheme [ICDS Blocks Operational (cum)]
9. Functional Anganwadis (cum)
9. No. of poor Families Assisted under 7 point charter (Municipal Affairs/UD Implementing Agency )
Afforestation
11. (a) Area covered under Plantation (Forest Department)
(b) No. of Seedings Planted (Forest Department)
12. Rural Roads – PMGSY ( Panchayats and R & D)
13. Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyntikaran Jojana – Villages electrified
14. Energising pump sets ((Power Department)

Jawahar Rozgar Yojna

Jawahar Rozgar Yojna was launched on April 1, 1989 by merging National Rural Employment Program (NREP) and Rural Landless Employment Guarantee Programme (RLEGP). At the end of Seventh Five Year Plan

So this was a consolidation of the previous employment programs and it was largest National Employment Program of India at that time with a general objective of providing 90-100 Days Employment per person particularly in backward districts. People below Poverty Line were main targets.

The Yojna was implemented on rural scale. Every village was to be covered through Panchayati Raj Institutions. The village got aide and support from District Rural Development Authority. Expenditures were born by central & state in 80:20 ratios.
Since 1993-94 the Yojna was made more targets oriented and expanded substantially through increased budgetary allocations. It was divided into 3 streams:
First Stream: Comprising general works under JRY and also two sub schemes Indira Awas Yojna and Million Wells Scheme. This stream got 75% of the total allocation. In Indira Awas Yojna the allocation was increased from 6% to 10 % and in Million Wells Scheme from 20% to 30 % during that period.
Second Stream: This was also called intensified JRY and was implemented in selected 120 backward districts. It got 20% allocation.
Third Stream: This was left with 5 % allocation for Innovative programs which included Prevention of labor migration, drought proofing watershed etc. programs.

Since April 1, 1999 this Yojna was replaced by Jawahar Gram samridhi Yojna. Later from September 25, 2001, Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojna was merged with Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojna

Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme (APDRP)

Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme or APDRP has been undertaken from the year 2000-01 with the twin objectives of financial turn-around in the performance of the power sector especially in electric distribution and improvement in quality of supply. The role of APDRP is to act as a catalyst for bringing about the desired changes through funding arrangements for implementing schemes.
The schemes are targeted towards improving financial viability and customer satisfaction. The scheme comprises of 25% grant and 25% of soft loans from the Central Government to the State Government. The remaining 50% resources have to be generated by State Government. The states also have to commit themselves for agreed loss improvement and collection improvement.
APDRP mainly focuses on six aspects i.e. Customer, Feeder, Distribution Circle, SEB, State and the Nation.
Objectives:
1. Improving financial viability: This can be achieved by reducing Transmission and Distribution (T&D) losses and improving revenue collections.
2. Reduction of T&D losses to around 10 %: The reported total T&D losses are 24 % on an all India average basis. Losses including pilferage and wrong classification are much higher in some pockets of India. Thus, the higher losses are mainly due to commercial losses. The T&D losses are pegged at around 10% in better managed power systems in the developed countries. In some States of India where private utilities are in place, the T&D loss is about 11 %, which is close to the world benchmark of 7 to 8 %. This also points out that the loss figure of around 10 to 15 % is achievable in better administered organizations. Privatization has better scope to show efficiency improvement.
3. Improving customer satisfaction: Customer satisfaction can be improved by providing better quality power through reduced voltage fluctuations and improved availability.
4. Transparency through Computerization: Along with 100 % energy metering in the districts, it is necessary to enforce energy accounting and auditing as per Energy Conservation Act 2001. Energy accounting system should be able to take input data automatically at various levels from central meter reading control system. Based on this data, energy accounting system should be able to provide information about the losses and pilferages at various levels.
Most of the States have initiated actions to implement schemes under APDRP programme. Tamil Nadu has introduced the concept of reliability index for power supply in six cities and towns - Chennai, Coimbatore, Tiruchi, Madurai, Salem and Tirunelveli. Tata Power monitors reliability indices such as CAIFI, CAIDI, SAIFI, SAIDI, etc. for Mumbai distribution. Andhra Pradesh has started computing power supply reliability index for 20 towns and has also put in place an effective anti-pilferage legislation. The State has set up call centres in all district headquarters and has planned to set them in the rural areas in near future. In States where feeder and consumer metering have been completed, immediate gains in revenue ranging from 20 to 30 % have been visible. Other States are in the process of implementing such projects.

In the Union Budget 2009-10, Allocation under Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme (APDRP) increased by 160 per cent to Rs.2,080 crore in B.E. 2009-10 over B.E. 2008-09.

Rajiv Awas Yojana

• Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) is a new scheme announced by the President earlier in 2009, focuses on slum dwellers and the urban poor.
• This scheme aims at promoting a slum-free India in five years and would focus on according property rights to slum dwellers.
• The scheme will focus on according property rights to slum dwellers and the urban poor by the states and union territories.
• It would provide basic amenities such as water supply, sewerage, drainage, internal and approach roads, street lighting and social infrastructure facilities in slums and low income settlements adopting a 'whole city' approach. It would also provide subsidized credit.
• Allocation for housing and provision of basic amenities to urban poor enhanced to Rs.3,973 crore in the Union Budget 2009-10. This includes provision of Rs. 150 Crore for Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY).
• As per the UPA government's proposal for this scheme , the schemes for affordable housing through partnership and the scheme for interest subsidy for urban housing would be dovetailed into the Rajiv Awas Yojana which would extend support under JNNURM to States that are willing to assign property rights to people living in slum areas.
• The Government's effort would be to create a slum free India through the Rajiv Awas Yojana.
• The Concept Note on RAY was finalized and sent to Planning Commission for their ‘in principle’ approval. The Planning Commission has accorded its ‘in principle’ approval for the proposed scheme recently. The draft guidelines of the scheme has been prepared and circulated to all States/UTs/Central Ministries and experts/NGOs for comments.
• Developing a robust database on slums is critical for implementation of the proposed Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY). The Ministry of HUPA has released funds for Slum/Household/Livelihoods surveys in 394 class I cities having more than one lakh population in the country.
• The surveys are in progress. Funds will also be released for other towns/cities in a phased manner. An e-enabled MIS is being developed for processing of data and building a national database.

In the Union Budget 2010-11, the outlay for Rajiv Awas Yojna has been provided for Rs. 1270 Crore.

Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)

Cities and towns of India constitute the world’s second largest urban system. They contribute over 50% of country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and are central to economic growth. For these cities to realize their full potential and become true engines of growth, it is necessary that focused attention be given to the improvement of infrastructure therein. For achieving this objective, a Mission mode approach is essential.

JNNURM was launched on 3rd December 2005.
Objectives:

1. Focused attention to integrated development of basic services to the urban poor Security of tenure at affordable price, improved housing, water supply, sanitation;
2. Convergence of services in fields of education, health and social security
3. As far as possible providing housing near the place of occupation of the urban poor
4. Effective linkage between asset creation and asset management to ensure efficiency
5. Scaling up delivery of civic amenities and provision of utilities with emphasis on universal access to urban poor.
6. Ensuring adequate investment of funds to fulfill deficiencies in the basic services to the urban poor.

Sub Missions: JNNURM comprises two Sub-Missions :

1. Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) (Sub-mission I)
2. Basic Services to the Urban Poor Urban (BSUP) (Sub-mission II)

There are, in addition, two other components:

1. Urban Infrastructure Development of Small & Medium Towns (UIDSSMT)
2. Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme (IHSDP)

Number of Cities as of December 20, 2009:

• The number of cities in Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission is 65 by the end of 2009. The last two cities added are Tirupati and Porbundar.

Purchase of Buses:

1. Under the second stimulus package announced by the Government on 2.1.2009, it has been decided that States, as a one time measure upto 30.6.2009 would be provided assistance under the JNNURM for the purchase of buses for their urban transport systems.
2. Accordingly under the scheme launched by the Ministry of Urban Development, a total of 15260 buses have been approved for 61 JNNURM cities at a total cost of Rs.4723.94 crore out of which total admissible Central Assistance would be Rs.2088.05 crore.

Progress in UIG Component:

1. For Urban Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) component Additional Central Assistance(ACA) for was increased from Rs 25,500 crore to Rs 31,500 crore for the Year 2009.
2. Under the UIG component of JNNURM, 20 projects were sanctioned during 2009, bringing total number of projects sanctioned under the UIG component since inception (i.e. since 3rd December 2005) to 481.

Progress in UIDSSMT component:

1. Seven year allocation for the Urban Infrastructure Development for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) component was raised from Rs 6400 crore to Rs 11,400 crore in the Year 2009.

New Schemes:
Two new Schemes were launched in 2009

1. The Asian Development Bank assisted North Eastern Region Urban Development Programme (NERUDP) covering Agartala, Shillong, Aizawl, Kohima and Gangtok
2. Scheme for infrastructure development in the satellite towns around the seven mega cities.

Proposed Programme Management Unit :

1. To strengthen the capacity of State Level Nodal Agency (SLNA) to effectively coordinate implementation of projects and reforms under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, Ministry of Urban Development has proposed to support a Programme Management Unit (PMU) at the SLNA.
2. The financial support for establishing PMUs was initiated in June 2007. Based on proposals sent by the states the Mission Directorate has approved 19 PMUs of which, 10 states have established arid operationalized PMUs.

Project Implementation Unit (PIU)

• The Mission Directorate is providing financial and technical support to establish Project Implementation Units (PIUs) at the municipal level, to enhance their capability to effectively implement projects and reforms under JNNURM. The PIU is meant to be an operations unit supplementing and enhancing the existing skill mix of the ULB, rather than a supervisory body. The Mission Directorate has approved 45 PIUs of which 26 PIUs have established andd operationalized by the ULBs.

Independent Review and Monitoring Agency (IRMA)

1. IRMAs are agencies to be appointed by the states for monitoring of the progress of implementation of the projects sanctioned under the JNNURM so that the funds released are utilized in a purposeful and time-bound manner.
2. The proposals of Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Pudducherry, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka for appointment of IRMA have been approved by the CSMC.
3. IRMAs have been established in Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan.
4. The states of Bihar, Delhi, Nagaland, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh are in the process of appointing IRMAs.
5. For the states of Chandigarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and Goa, Ministry of Urban Development has initiated steps for appointment of IRMAs on behalf of these States.
6. CSMC has approved the selection of firms for appointment of IRMAs in these States and States have been intimated about the decision for entering into the agreement with the selected firms.

Peer Experience and Reflective Learning (PEARL)

1. The “Peer Experience and Reflective Learning” (PEARL) programme was launched to foster cross learning and knowledge sharing through networking among the Mission cities.
2. To achieve this objective, the Mission supported formation of groups/networks amongst JNNURM cities having similar socio-economic profile and urban issues, along with natural affinity to peer pair.
3. The National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) has been appointed as the National Coordinator for the PEARL programme for coordinating the overall functioning of the networks, with an appreciation of the independent self driven nature of the networks, and assisting the Mission Directorate in supporting and monitoring the programme.
4. Under the programme, network of heritage cities have organized knowledge sharing workshops.
5. A website has been made operational providing tools to support networking and knowledge sharing. NIUA has brought out a newsletter “PEARL Update”.

Credit Rating in JNNURM

1. JNNURM has undertaken an exercise for assessment of finances and credit worthiness of the Mission ULBs, through process of credit rating.
2. This is intended to trigger the process of leveraging debt for JNNURM projects and to provide a platform for the ULBs and financial institutions to engage on issues related to project financing.
3. Presently, 59 ULBs in the Mission cities have been assigned final rating and made public. Four workshops have been conducted for dissemination of ratings and bringing the ULBs in contact with the banks financial institutions.
4. The surveillance rating has been initiated in Feb 2009. The surveillance ratings will include, but will not be restricted to major developments since last rating, issues / concerns raised, by the rating agencies, during the first round of rating, and rationale for re-affirming /changing the ratings.

Programme Management and Evaluation System (PMES)

1. PMES has been developed as a comprehensive web-enabled Management Information System (MIS) which will serve to cover all the critical aspects of programme implementation. Intensive hands-on training for City as well as State level officials has been conducted to ensure effective use of the application.
2. Further rounds of training have been planned and will be rolled out shortly. PMES is live for all States covering 52 Mission cities, training for which have been completed.

Public Private Partnership (PPP) initiatives

1. The Mission Cities have agreed to include promotion of PPP through appropriate policies and projects as a part of the reforms agenda.
2. A number of States such as Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa, Rajasthan, West Bengal, have adopted PPP policy.
3. PPP cell has also been established by Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Punjab and West Bengal for promotion of PPP for infrastructure projects in their States.
4. PPP initiatives have been taken by Indore, Vadodara, Pune and Ahmedabad for establishing City Bus Service.

Establishment of City Voluntary Technical Corp. (CVTC)

1. City Volunteer Technical Corps (CVTC’s) and City Technical Advisory Groups (CTAG’s) are voluntary groups of professionally qualified persons in the sectors of urban planning, urban governance, urban engineering, legal and financial services and urban poverty.
2. Their setting up was being facilitated by the National Technical Advisory Group (NTAG) on request of the ULBs.

Community Participation Fund

1. A Community Participation Fund (CPF) has been established on 4.6.2007 by the Mission Directorate with the initial corpus of Rs. 100 crore with the provision of Rs.90 crore for the projects during the remaining years of mission period.
2. So far 39 proposals under CPF have been approved.

National Mission Mode project (NMMP) on e-Governance in Municipalities as part of JNNURM

1. A Mission Mode Project on e-Governance in municipalities has been prepared by this Ministry to make urban governance more efficient and effective.
2. Since local government is the first interface between citizens and government this initiative would solve a number of problems that the people in towns and cities are facing due to rapid urbanization. It would assist improved service delivery, decentralization, better information management & transparency, citizen’s involvement in government, improved interaction between local governments and its citizens as well as other interest groups like NGOs, CBOs, RWAs, etc.
3. It has been decided that initially the scheme would be a part of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) for 35 cities with population of over 10 lakh and a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) for other cities and towns would be taken up after watching the implementation under JNNURM.
4. Accordingly, the guidelines on NMMP on e-Governance in municipalities have been prepared and circulated to the States/ULBs for submission of DPRs.
5. Six projects on e-governance in Municipalities have since been approved for the city of Vijayawada, Nagpur, Kochi, Pune, Navi Mumbai and Ulhasnagar.

JUST Project

1. JNNURM Urban Strengthening and Transformation (JUST) Project [Capacity Building for Urban Development -CBUD] is a World Bank assisted project.
2. It consists of US$ 60 million combining US$ 40 million for Urban Development component and US$ 20 million for Urban Poverty component in 20 participating ULBs which would implement at least two reforms covering financial management, planning governance, service delivery as well as poverty reducing strategies.
3. The selection of the 20 ULBs would be done by the CSMC involving a mix from leading and lagging states using criteria for urban governance, provisioning of urban services and urban poverty.

Capacity Building Scheme for Urban Local Bodies (CBULB)

1. In order to strengthen the capacities of Urban Local Bodies other than those towns and cities not covered under JNNURM and UIDSSMT, Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India has formulated a scheme viz. ‘Capacity Building Scheme for Urban Local Bodies’ (CBULB) having a total outlay for Rs. 125 crore for 11th Five Year Plan with the objective of setting up of centres of excellence in the field of urban development.
2. Under this scheme, financial assistance is being extended to Identified Institutions/Cities/States for aforesaid objectives. At present, Ministry of Urban Development has received proposals from Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, Kerala and Karnataka Governments for financial assistance under CBULB scheme.

National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA)

1. NREGA is designed as a safety net to reduce migration by rural poor households in the lean period through A hundred days of guaranteed unskilled manual labour provided when demanded at minimum wage on works focused on water conservation, land development & drought proofing.
2. Notification of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act came in September 2005. It was launched on February 2, 2006.
3. NREGA is the flagship programme of the UPA Government that directly touches lives of the poor and promotes inclusive growth.
4. The Act aims at enhancing livelihood security of households in rural areas of the country by providing at least one hundred days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.
5. The ongoing programmes of Sampoorn Grameen Rozgar Yojna & National Food for Work Programme were subsumed within this programme in the 200 of the most backward districts of the country, in which it was introduced in phase -1 .
6. In phase-2 it was introduced in 130 additional districts.
7. The scheme was extended to 274 rural districts from April 1, 2008 in phase-3.
8. NREGA is the first ever law internationally, that guarantees wage employment at an unprecedented scale.
9. Dr. Jean Drèze, a Belgian born economist, at the Delhi School of Economics, has been a major influence on this project.

What are Objectives of NREGA?

1. Augmenting wage employment.
2. Strengthening natural resource management through works that address causes of chronic poverty like drought, deforestation and soil erosion and so encourage sustainable development.
3. Strengthening grassroots processes of democracy
4. Infusing transparency and accountability in governance.
5. Strengthening decentralization and deepening processes of democracy by giving a pivotal role to the Panchayati Raj Institutions in planning, monitoring and implementation.

What are the Unique Features of NREGA?

1. Time bound employment guarantee and wage payment within 15 days
2. Incentive-disincentive structure to the State Governments for providing employment as 90 per cent of the cost for employment provided is borne by the Centre or payment of unemployment allowance at their own cost and emphasis on labour intensive works prohibiting the use of contractors and machinery.
3. The Act mandates a 33 percent participation for women.

How NREGA is Implemented? The following image shows the key processes in the implementation of NREGA.

1. Cost sharing : Central Government 3/4th , State Government 1/4th
2. Adult members of rural households submit their name, age and address with photo to the Gram Panchayat.
3. The Gram panchayat registers households after making enquiry and issues a job card. The job card contains the details of adult member enrolled and his /her photo.
4. Registered person can submit an application for work in writing (for at least fourteen days of continuous work) either to panchayat or to Programme Officer.
5. The panchayat/programme officer will accept the valid application and issue dated receipt of application, letter providing work will be sent to the applicant and also displayed at panchayat office.
6. The employment will be provided within a radius of 5 km: if it is above 5 km extra wage will be paid.
7. If employment under the scheme is not provided within fifteen days of receipt of the application daily unemployment allowance will be paid to the applicant.

NREGA & Union Budget 2009-10:

1. During 2008-09, NREGA provided employment opportunities for more than 4.47 crore households as against 3.39 crore households covered in 2007-08.
2. Govt. is committed to providing a real wage of Rs.100 a day as an entitlement under the NREGA.
3. To increase the productivity of assets and resources under NREGA, convergence with other schemes relating to agriculture, forests, water resources, land resources and rural roads is being initiated. In the first stage, a total of 115 pilot districts have been selected for such convergence.
4. Govt of India has proposed an allocation of Rs.39,100 crore for the year 2009-10 for NREGA which marks an increase of 144% over 2008-09 Budget Estimates.

How Monitoring & Evaluation is Done in NREGA?

1. The Ministry has set up a comprehensive monitoring system. For effective monitoring of the projects 100% verfication of the works at the Block level, 10% at the District level and 2% at the State level inspections need to be ensured.
2. In order to optimize the multiplier effects of NREGA, the Ministry has set up a Task Force to look at the possibility of convergence of programmes like National Horticulture Mission, Rashtriya Krishi vikas Yojana, Bharat Nirman, Watershed Development with NREGA.
3. These convergence efforts will add value to NREGA, works and aid in creating durable efforts and also enable planned and coordinated public investments in rural areas.
   

Critical Issues of NREGA, how they are addressed?

1. Issues Related to Job Cards: To ensure that rural families likely to seek unskilled manual labour are identified & verify against reasonably reliable local data base so that nondomiciled contractor’s workers are not used on NREGA works . What is done for this problem? Job card verification is done on the spot against an existing data base and Reducing the time lag between application and issue of job cards to eliminate the possibility of rentseeking, and creating greater transparency etc. Besides ensuring that Job Cards are issued prior to employment demand and work allocation rather than being issued on work sites which could subvert the aims of NREGA
2. Issues related to Applications: To ascertain choices and perceptions of households regarding lean season employment to ensure exercise of the right to employment within the time specified of fifteen days to ensure that works are started where and when there is demand for labour, not demand for works the process of issuing a dated acknowledgement for the application for employment needs to be scrupulously observed. In its absence, the guarantee cannot be exercised in its true spirit
3. Issues Related to Selection of Works: Selection of works by gram sabha in villages and display after approval of shelf of projects, to ensure public choice, transparency and accountability and prevent material intensive, contractor based works and concocted works records
4. Issues related to Execution of Works: At least half the works should be run by gram panchayats . Maintenance of muster roll by executing agency -numbered muster rolls which only show job card holders must be found at each work-to prevent contractor led works
5. Issues related to measurement of work done: Regular measurement of work done according to a schedule of rural rates sensitive Supervision of Works by qualified technical personnel on time. Reading out muster rolls on work site during regular measurement -to prevent bogus records and payment of wages below prescribed levels
6. Issues related to Payments: Payment of wages through banks and post offices -to close avenues for use of contractors, short payment and corruption
7. Audit : Provision of adequate quality of work site facilities for women and men labourers Creation and maintenance of durable assets Adequate audit and evaluation mechanisms Widespread institution of social audit and use of findings

Some Points:

1. Rozgar Jagrookta Puruskar award has been introduced to recognize outstanding Contributions by Civil society Organizations at State, District, Block and Gram Panchayat levels to generate awareness about provisions and entitlements and ensuring compliance with implementing processes.
2. The government has engaged professional institutions like IIMs, IITs and agricultural universities to assess the implementation of NREGA across the country.

Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY)

This scheme has been merged with NREGS since February 2006 so only most important points are given below:

1. The Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) was launched on 25 September, 2001 by merging the on-going schemes of EAS (Employment Assurance Scheme) and the JGSY (Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojna)
2. Objective was to providing additional wage employment and food security, alongside creation of durable community assets in rural areas.
3. The annual outlay was Rs.10, 000 crore which included 50 lakh tones on food grains.
4. The cash component shared between the Centre and the States in the ratio of 75:25.
5. Food grains were provided free of cost to the States/UTs.
6. Minimum wages paid to the workers through a mix of minimum five kg of food grains and at least 25 per cent of wages in cash.
7. Implemented by all the three tiers of Panchayati Raj Institutions. Each level of Panchayat was an independent unit for formulation of Action.
8. Resources distributed among District Panchayats, Intermediate Panchayats and the Gram Panchayats in the ratio of 20:30:50.
9. Contractors not permitted to be engaged for execution of any of the works and no middlemen/intermediate agencies can be engaged for executing works under the scheme.

National Food For Work Programme

1. This program was subsumed with the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) in February 2006.
2. The National Food for Work Programme was launched in November 2004 in 150 most backward districts of the country, identified by the Planning Commission in consultation with the Ministry of Rural Development and the State governments.
3. The objective of the programme was to provide additional resources apart from the resources available under the Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) to 150 most backward districts of the country so that generation of supplementary wage employment and providing of food-security through creation of need based economic, social and community assets in these districts are further intensified.
4. The scheme was 100 per cent Centrally sponsored.
5. The programme has since been subsumed in National Rural Employment Guarantee Act which has come in force in 200 identified districts of the country including 150 NFFWP districts.
6. The Act provided 100 days of work guarantee to every rural household whose members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.