2 dead MGNREGS workers get payments for over 2 yrs

Karam Prakash

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Patiala, June 7

An inquiry into works under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has revealed that payments were released against the names of two Patiala workers, who had died more than two years ago.

Inquiry report an ‘eyewash’

The inquiry report by the Patiala ADC is an eyewash. The state government is trying to shield MGNREGS officials, who are more responsible for corruption as compared with the sarpanch. — Rajkumar Kansuha, Democratic MGNREGA front state president

Ajaib Nath and Malook Singh, both residents of Fatehpur village in Nabha block, died on May 8, 2020, and December 19, 2019, respectively. They were, however, kept alive in the records by officials concerned.

The matter came to light when the Democratic MGNREGS Front submitted a complaint in January this year to the Patiala Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC).

Subsequently, an inquiry was ordered. The ADC’s report mentions that the payment against the name of one of the deceased workers was drawn 20 times.

The procedure as laid down under the MGNREGS is that a worker has to first raise a written demand for work. After getting the work, his attendance has to be regularly marked on the muster roll (attendance register). Subsequently, an official (engineer) checks the work and then MGNREGS official makes the payment to the worker.

The inquiry report has put Fatehpur village sarpanch Jagroop Singh in the dock because “he knew that both workers were dead, but didn’t disclose the information to the authorities concerned”.

The ADC has called for disciplinary action against the sarpanch under the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act.

The ADC said amount drawn against the names of the two workers should be recovered from the Gram Rozgar Sahayak (GRS), whose responsibility was to supervise the entire work.

Meanwhile, Democratic MGNREGA Front state president Rajkumar Kansuha dismissed the report as an eyewash. He claimed the government was trying to shield MGNREGS officials, who, he said, were more responsible for corruption than the sarpanch.

He further said, “Payments were drawn against the names of the deceased workers on the basis of Technical Assistant’s (TA) report. There is, however, no mention of the TA in the inquiry report. Moreover, no punitive action is recommended against the GRS.”