'MPs want MGNREGA audited but possessive about MPLADS'

Taking a dig at his colleagues in parliament, the Union rural development minister Jairam Ramesh on Thursday said while MPs waste no time in demanding social audit of government programmes, they are unwilling for similar monitoring of the MPLAD scheme.

“Whenever there is criticism of MGNREGA in parliament, I say if the same social audit was there for MPLADS, then it would be good for the country. But they (MPs) are not ready for social audit of MPLADS,” said Jairam Ramesh at a function on Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). He said, “social audit has brought about transparency” and even “Anna Hazare agrees to it”. He released a report ‘MGNREGA opportunities, challenges and the road ahead’. Ramesh said every third question in parliament is on MGNREGA. “MPs want that all the works are conducted with their consent....Their intention is different,” he said.

Brushing aside reports related to corruption in MGNREGA - the UPA’s flagship social programme - the minister said the scheme “has given a new hope to people and self respect to the poor downtrodden people”.

MGNREGA guarantees 100 days of employment every year to a rural household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. The budget of the scheme is around Rs44,000 crores this year.

Under the Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS), each MP has the choice to suggest to the district collector for, works to the tune of Rs five crore every year to be taken up in their constituency.

Members of the parliament’s upper house - Rajya Sabha - can recommend works in one or more districts in the state from where they are elected. Nominated MPs in either house of the parliament can select any one or more districts from any one state in the country for implementation of their choice of work under the scheme.