Tirupati: MGNREGA comes to help of migrant labourers

Tirupati: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) has been helping a lot to migrant labourers in getting employment in villages in Chittoor district. It may be noted that thousands of migrant labourers who have settled in Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad cities have come back to native places due to corona virus scare.

During these lockdown days 2,226 migrant labourers have enrolled their names as new labourers under MGNREGA scheme. They belong to Nagalapuram, Pichaturu, Nindra, Vijayapuram, Palasamudram and Nagari mandals. Most of the people from these eastern mandals had earlier worked as workers in private companies in Chennai and Sricity Industries clusters.

They lost their jobs there due to lockdown. Now these people are getting income through MGNREGA scheme and receiving wages weekly once through banks. officials are providing earth work to these labourers in agricultural canals and tanks and in laying gravel roads.

According to officials, around 10,000 migrant labourers have registered in the scheme in the district. The workers are paid Rs 250 as daily wage for earth works. AP Rural Development and Panchayat Raj officials instructed the mandal level officials to provide work to the workers under MGNREGA.

" Rural employment guarantee scheme was very useful in providing employment to us for the last two months during lockdown. Before the lockdown I worked as labourer in Cadbury industry near Chennai , but I had lost that job as the unit was closed. I registered my name for work under MGNREGA scheme and getting some income," said U Munishekar , a migrant labourer , Biraka Kuppam in Chittoor District.