The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : APCC panel to monitor rural job scheme

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 04, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

APCC panel to monitor rural job scheme

Special Correspondent

Keshava Rao seeks to allay fears over political interference

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president K. Keshava Rao has announced a nine-member committee to monitor the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (NREGP) renamed as APREGP here.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Dr. Rao, who will be heading the committee, said its job was to keep a watch on the programme to prevent any misuse of it anywhere. Recalling the large-scale corruption involved in the erstwhile Food-For-Work Programme under Telugu Desam rule, he said the programme was meant to benefit the poorest of the poor.

However, the committee would not interfere either in the selection of beneficiaries or in the functions of officials. The PCC had no intention of hijacking the programme to the benefit of party workers and there was no need for any apprehensions in this regard, he said.

Awareness programme

He said people of the State were fortunate that the employment guarantee scheme was launched from Anantapur and as explained by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi it would put an end to the migration from the districts.

Referring to the brochure prepared by the PCC in this regard in Telugu and released by Ms. Gandhi at Anantapur on Thursday after the launch of the NREGP, he said it would be distributed to people throughout the State to educate them about the benefits.

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