Mumbai, Sep 29 (PTI) The Maharashtra government has made available Rs 6,728 crore under the employment guarantee scheme to provide jobs to people in rural areas affected by drought and strengthen water conservation, agriculture-related facilities and rural infrastructure, a minister said on Tuesday.
The funds will be used to undertake 375 types of individual and public works, aimed at generating employment locally and creating permanent assets in villages, Employment Guarantee Scheme Minister Bharat Gogawale said in a press conference.
The allocation has been made through the Maharashtra Employment Guarantee Scheme, Viksit Bharat Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission-Gramin (VB-G RAM G) and related agencies.
Of the total allocation, Rs 1,145 crore have been earmarked for the Amravati division, Rs 489 crore for Konkan, Rs 1,944 crore for Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Rs 119 crore for Nagpur and Rs 801 crore for Pune division.
The Centre will contribute 60 per cent of the funds, while the state government’s share will be 40 per cent, he said.
Individual-benefit works include irrigation facilities, cattle sheds, fruit orchards, borewell recharge, bamboo plantation, works under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, shed construction for sericulture and compost pits, among others.
Public-benefit works include repair and maintenance of public ponds, gabion structures, percolation tanks, earthen bunds, RCC retaining structures, farm and access roads, storage buildings of agricultural produce market committees and market platforms.
The department will focus on generating maximum employment while also strengthening water conservation, agriculture-related facilities and rural infrastructure, Gogawale said.
The Maharashtra government on Saturday declared drought in 265 of its 358 talukas, or 74 per cent of the state, amid rainfall deficit and announced relief measures, including crop loan restructuring, land revenue concessions, and power bill subsidies.
As per the report, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division has the highest number of 74 drought-affected talukas, followed by Amravati with 56, Nashik with 49, Nagpur with 39, Pune with 35 and Thane with 12, including one in Raigad, three in Ratnagiri and eight in Sindhudurg, have been included in the list. PTI MR NP
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