Bengaluru, Oct 14 (PTI) A record 2.04 crore person-days of employment have been generated in the state under the VB-G RAM G rural employment guarantee scheme from July 1 to October 13 this year, Karnataka Minister Eshwar Khandre said on Wednesday.
During the corresponding period last year, 1.71 crore person-days of employment were generated under MGNREGA.
Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), which replaced Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), was implemented in the state from July 1.
“The increase this year comes amid a rainfall deficit attributed to the El Niño effect, with employment being provided under the scheme to a larger number of rural poor, Dalits, disadvantaged unskilled workers and landless labourers,” Khandre said in a statement.
Raichur district in the Kalyana Karnataka region topped the state by generating 24 lakh person-days of employment in the mentioned period. Bidar ranked second with 21 lakh person-days, followed by Koppal with 18 lakh person-days, the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj minister said.
Compared with the previous year, employment generation increased by 340 per cent in Vijayanagara district, 257 per cent in Kalaburagi, 207 per cent in Koppal, 175 per cent in Ballari and 173 per cent in Bidar, Khandre added.
The state has taken steps to conduct e-KYC verification of job cards issued under MGNREGA and organise job card camps to distribute new cards. These measures have helped hundreds of families, who would otherwise migrate in search of work, to find employment where they live, he said.
A total of 87,164 new job cards have been issued in the state this year, he added.
Works undertaken under the scheme include desilting of lakes, social forestry, rejuvenation of canals, lakes and ponds, construction of cattle sheds and farm ponds, measures to prevent soil erosion on hill slopes, construction of compost pits and rural connectivity roads, he said.
The scheme has now been expanded to cover the construction of houses under housing schemes, community halls and rural bus stands. The initiative will focus on creating permanent assets and promoting village development, he added.
Under the VB-G RAM G scheme, each family is eligible for up to 125 days of employment a year, with a wage of Rs 382 per day for both men and women, without gender discrimination.
At this rate, a rural household can earn up to Rs 47,750 annually if it receives the full 125 days of employment, Khandre said. PTI KSU ADB
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