Centre may allow machines for work under NREGS: Report

More than 1.04 crore migrant workers across the country returned to their home states amid the coronavirus pandemic-led livelihood crisis

The Centre could allow machines to be used for work under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), The Hindustan Times reports.

This could be the first time such a relaxation could be allowed since the scheme was first enacted in 2005 during the then Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.

The reason cited against the use of machines was that they would encroach on the wages of the workers and thus defeat the entire purpose of the scheme, the report said.

The NREGS is a social security scheme that aims to improve livelihood in rural areas by ensuring atleast 100 person days of employment in a financial year to at least one member of every household.

The report noted that Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka requested this relaxation owing to the rocky terrain that makes manual work all the more difficult. Officials told the paper that the same is under "active consideration".

They additionally told the publication that there would be no impact on the wages of the NREGS workers even if machines were to be allowed for selective use under the scheme.

As per earlier reports, the three states had sought relaxation in rules under NREGS, saying that the rocky terrain across large areas in these states makes manual work more difficult than normal.

The report also noted that as more and more women are joining the scheme, some states have expressed that the permission to use machines would aid them while working in rocky areas or heavy-lifting. The three states that have written to the Centre in this regard also happen to have a high rate of women participation under the NREGS.