Soon, MNREGA workers to get payments directly

NEW DELHI: Workers under the MNREGA across the country would soon get their payments directly, a step taken by the Government to weed out corruption in the ambitious rural job guarantee scheme.

"It will check bogus identity. It will reduce delayed payments. It will bring payments to the beneficiary rather than the beneficiary coming to the payments," Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh told reporters here today.

"Rural Development Ministry along with Finance Ministry and UIDAI have decided to seed in the Aadhaar numbers of MNREGA workers in NREGASoft and to achieve complete 'e-Disbursement' for MNREGA workers in 46 districts," he said.

Banking correspondents equipped with Aadhaar-enabled micro ATMs will visit the doorsteps of MNREGA wage earners to distribute their payments.

It will be implemented initially in selected 46 districts and then extended to all other districts in two years time.

"Within two years time Rs 50000 crores of individual beneficiary transfers from the Ministry of Rural Development must flow through the Aadhaar linked bank accounts," he said.

Ramesh also said that his Ministry will approach the Finance Ministry with a proposal to provide some subsidies to banks for the micro ATMs.

Out of its Rs 99000 crore annual budget, the Ministry's Rs 50000 crores goes to individual beneficiaries in the form of MNREGA wages and social security pensions.