A file photo of Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan speaking in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly.
VIJAYAWADA
Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development (PR&RD) K. Pawan Kalyan said in the Legislative Assembly (LA) on Monday that the officials identified corruption to the tune of over ₹250 crore in the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) during 2019-24 and of that amount, only ₹71 crore was in the process of recovery.
The government was yet to find proof of misappropriation of the balance ₹179 crore, he stated, while insisting that the reason for it was a collusion that ran deep from the highest echelons of power.
Replying to a question by Adoni MLA Valmiki Parthasarathi (BJP) on the steps taken by the government to prevent corruption in NREGS and action taken against the officers and field assistants responsible for the misuse of funds, Mr. Kalyan said the issue was a matter of concern as it was a huge scam that resulted in the exploitation of a large number of workers dependent on the scheme for their livelihood, and the government had not given up on unearthing the full scale of the irregularities committed in a blatant manner.
It was a big task being carried out by the PR&RD, he said, adding that a wage monitoring cell was keeping track of the payments being made to the workers, to ensure that injustice was not done to them. The YSR Congress Party leaders got wages paid to thousands of their near and dear ones whom they got enrolled in the muster as workers against all norms, he said.
Asked whether there was a scope for increasing the daily wages under NREGS from the present ₹300, and the number of mandays from 100 to 150 in a year, Mr. Pawan Kalyan said it was to be decided by the Central government and that it was looking into those demands that came from several States.
Published – March 17, 2025 08:14 pm IST
