Bajwa raps central, Punjab govts over deletion of MGNREGA job cards

Questioning the criteria for the large-scale deletions, Bajwa said the exclusions had deprived poor rural labourers of their livelihood

Leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa on Saturday alleged that the Punjab and central governments had colluded to exclude lakhs of genuine workers from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme.

The Punjab leader of opposition alleged that instead of creating employment opportunities, the AAP government was reducing its financial burden by removing beneficiaries from the rural employment scheme (HT FIle)

Bajwa was reacting to official data tabled in the Lok Sabha, detailing deletion of over 14 lakh workers and over 8 lakh MGNREGA job cards in Punjab over the last five years to weed out duplicate and fake job cards as part of stricter verification measures.

Questioning the criteria for the large-scale deletions, Bajwa said the exclusions had deprived poor rural labourers of their livelihood. “The people of Punjab deserve transparency and accountability. The chief minister must explain why these exclusions were carried out and what steps will be taken to restore the rights of eligible workers,” Bajwa said.

Bajwa alleged that instead of creating employment opportunities, the AAP government was reducing its financial burden by removing beneficiaries from the rural employment scheme.