SC notice to Centre, UP govt on corruption in MNREGA

 The Supreme Court on Friday sought the replies of the Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government to a plea for CBI probe into alleged irregularities in implementing the rural employment scheme under MNREGA in the state.

While issuing notices to the Union and the Uttar Pradesh governments on the plea for probe, a bench of justices Swatanter Kumar and S J Mukhopadhaya also asked the Orissa government to file an affidavit detailing the steps taken by it for effectively implementing the rural job guarantee scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) in the state.

The bench last year on May 12 had ordered a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in implementing the rural job guarantee scheme in Orissa.

The court's order came on an application by Centre for Environment and Food Security which alleged that despite receiving investigation reports and intimations from the Rural Development Ministry about the alleged irregularities, there is an "apparent indifference on part of the state government of UP."

"After receipt of a large number of complaints, the Central government had reached a conclusion that the CBI investigation is necessary in the case of implementation of the MNREGA in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

"In this regard, the Ministry of Rural Development (nodal agency for implementation of the MNREGA) has written twice to the UP chief minister requesting that the State government should order a CBI investigation. The UP Government rejected the said request," the NGO said in its application.

The court had ordered CBI probe into alleged irregularities in implementation of NREGA in Orissa on basis of survey reports provided by the NGO, CAG and the National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD).

The irregularities had been detected in the districts of Kalahandi, Mayurbhanj, Rayagada, Bhawanipatna, Koraput and Malakangiri of Orissa, where there was misappropriation of funds between 53 per cent to 88 per cent, the reports had said.

The bench had asked the CBI to conduct a free and fair investigation expeditiously and place its first report within six months.