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Rajasthan gets a pat on the back for rural job scheme

Special Correspondent

JAIPUR: The Union Rural Development Ministry rates Rajasthan as one of the "performing States" in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) and the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yogna (PMGSY). The State, which spent Rs.3035.93 crore against a total allocation of Rs.2807.21 crore in 2006-07 under various Central schemes, has improved its performance in the Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) as well, it points out.

"The Rajasthan Government has been implementing NREGS with considerable enthusiasm," Union Minister for Rural Development Raghuvansh Prasad Singh said in Delhi during a videoconference with select journalists here in the State capital on Thursday. "There has been good participation of tribals in NREGA. The Scheme has proved a boon to Rajasthan and has stopped the seasonal migration of rural people in search of jobs," he said.

The videoconference, second of a series initiated by the Union Rural Development Ministry, was also attended by senior officials of the Ministry and journalists in Delhi. The first such conference was carried out with journalists in the Uttarakhand capital Dehra Dun three days ago. Press Information Bureau and the National Informatics Centre (NIC) facilitated the conference.

The Minister expressed his happiness over NREGS facilitating 100 days' employment to 6.39 lakh households out of the 11.75 lakhs registered for employment during 2006-07 in the six districts of Banswara, Dungarpur, Jhalawar, Karauli and Udaipur covered under the scheme. The Centre had released Rs.761.61 crore under the category while the total funds available with the State amounted to Rs.856.17 crore. Out of this the utilisation was Rs.693.06 crore (80.95 per cent), Dr. Singh informed.

In the current year six more districts— Tonk, Sawai Madhopur, Chittorgarh, Barmer, Jalore and Jaisalmer— have been added for the NREGS. The Central releases for the scheme so far have totalled Rs.490.70 crore out of which Rs.54.64 crore has been utilised.

"Rajasthan provided 100 days' jobs to 6.39 lakh households and this is an impressive record," Dr. Singh said. The State could generate 998.87-lakh person-days employment under the scheme. "The works were mainly concerned with watershed management, drought proofing and wasteland development, all aspects significant for an arid State," Dr. Singh pointed out.

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Rajasthan gets a pat on the back for rural job scheme

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