Rural job scheme workers to get wages within 7 days, UP govt tells House

Both wage fixation and the maximum number of work days fall under the purview of the central government, says minister Vijay Lakshmi Gautam

LUCKNOW The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday said that the wages of workers part of rural job scheme will now be paid in seven days, instead of 15, and the guaranteed number of work days will be increased from 100 to 125.

The minister said since the determination of wage rates is done by the centre, any increase in wages is not expected from the state government. (File Photo)

Replying during the Question Hour in the state Assembly, minister of state for rural development Vijay Lakshmi Gautam said the daily wage under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Uttar Pradesh has been fixed at ₹252, as per a notification issued by the central government.

She was responding to a question by Samajwadi Party member Anil Pradhan.

The minister said since the determination of wage rates is done by the centre, any increase in wages is not expected from the state government.

On Pradhan’s demand to raise the minimum daily wage to ₹700 in view of rising inflation and to increase the annual employment guarantee to 300 days, the minister said both wage fixation and the maximum number of work days fall under the purview of the central government.

Pradhan said the MGNREGA scheme helps economically weaker sections become self-reliant and alleged that the Centre has changed its guidelines, under which it earlier bore the full payment. He also alleged that around ₹200 crore in wages was pending for workers in UP and questioned how could labourers manage their livelihoods amid rising prices.

Referring to the renaming of the scheme, the minister, without naming the Congress, said before 2009 it was known as NREGA and the name was changed to include Mahatma Gandhi later.

Replying to a question by another SP MLA Samarpal Singh over introduction of English as language in government schools on the pattern of CBSE and ICSE, minister of state for basic education (independent charge) Sandeep Singh said all government schools have English as a subject.

“Before the national education policy, there were 12,479 government schools that were converted to English medium. NEP says teaching should be in local/regional language till class 5 or 8, if possible. But all schools have English as subject and the state government is taking all steps to educate children,” he said.

The minister said during the previous government, schools were in dilapidated state but the BJP government ran operation Kayakalp, and this year, 100% schools will have furniture.

SP MLA Ragini Singh raised a question on the availability of teachers, saying: “At least 9,508 schools across UP have only one teacher and many don’t even have that. They are running with shiksha mItras.” MLA Brijesh Katheria said furniture at schools was just on paper.

MLA Rakesh Kumar Verma raised a question regarding fee structure in private schools while MLA Kamal Akhtar raised a query on lack of teachers and pending appointment process.

“Admission to private schools is like passing exam to qualify as an IAS and fee structure cannot be afforded by poor families.” Replying to the question, Sandeep Singh shared action taken against schools for overcharging fee. “All districts have committees under district magistrate to probe charges regarding fee against private schools. Action has been taken in Gautam Buddha Nagar for tuition fee, in Sambhal for overcharging for textbooks at 33 schools,” said the minister.

‘Over 1.40L kids admitted to pvt schools under RTE’

UP has witnessed a significant increase in admissions of children from economically weaker section to private schools under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, said minister of state, basic education (independent charge), Sandeep Singh, replying to question during the Question Hour in the legislative assembly on Tuesday.

So far, over 1.40 lakh children have been admitted in 2025–26 under the RTE Act.

According to data, 61,403 children were admitted under RTE in the academic year 2021–22. The number increased to 70,406 in 2022–23, crossed one lakh (1,00,249) in 2023–24 and rose to 1,13,991 in 2024–25. In the ongoing year, admissions have already reached 1,40,007.

The government clarified that seat allocation is carried out school-wise, based on the number of reserved seats available and the applications received. Admissions are ensured strictly in line with this allocation process. HTC