Cash crunch hits NREGS workers

Visakhapatnam:  All the tribal families in the 11 agency mandals have been crying and facing tough times to get their essential commodities for the past one month as the district administration is not paying their wages. Over 3.4 lakh tribal beneficiaries are looking at the sky for their MGNREGS wages for the past four weeks.

Rs 39.47 crore dues were pending an no official is giving assurance when dues would be paid. Thanks to the severe currency crisis prevailing in the district, the bankers expressing their helplessness to pay the dues to the post offices to disburse wages to the tribals.

MGNREGS was launched to ensure minimum work to the rural people during the summer season. Though the tribals have done huge quantum of works in the agency and money sanctioned against the works, no bank is paying the money due to shortage of currency.

During the summer season, except the collection of tamarind and other forest produce, majority of the tribals are depending on the MGNREGS works in order to eke out their livelihood. Not only one or two mandals, there is no single payment in all the 11 agency mandals in the present season. Though all tribal associations and other NGOs have represented to the government there is no response so far.

“This is for the first time in the agency that all the families have been facing big troubles. During the summer, MGNREGS is the major income source to them. We met and explained the situation to the Collector and Joint Collector. The Collector said that administrative sanction was already given to disburse the wages, but due to the currency crisis, the banks failed to deposit the cash in the post offices. 

The Collector also said they wrote a letter to RBI for currency,” CPM state executive committee member Ch Narasinga Rao said. In fact, according to the MGNREGS guidelines, the wages have to the paid every week. But due to the impact of demonetisation, the currency was blocked and innocent tribals and other people have been suffering, Narasinga Rao pointed out.

"Yes, it is true there is a shortage of currency in the banks. We directed the banks to adjust with the deposits for payments. But the branch managers are saying that, 80 per cent of the money being withdrawn by the customers and 20 per cent only coming into the banks. We received information that the MGNREGS wages are not paid to the tribals and we are trying to adjust the money,” a senior official of SBI said.