MGNREGS in Bihar: 39 lakh job cards deleted; duplicate cards, migration key reasons

The deletions were done during the verification exercise as part the ongoing process of linking the job cards with Aadhaar cards for the recently launched Aadhaar-based payment of wages to workers under the scheme, officials said.

An estimated 39 lakh job cards under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) have been deleted during this financial year from the total 2.42 crore registered in Bihar, either on account of duplicates being found or because the card holder has migrated to other states, officials in the rural development department said.

MGNREGS workers during a protest in Patna in 2019. MGNREGS is aimed at providing work to unskilled rural workers for at least 100 days in a year. (HT Photo)

The deletions were done during the verification exercise as part the ongoing process of linking the job cards with Aadhaar cards for the recently launched Aadhaar-based payment of wages to workers under the scheme, officials said.

The “deleted” job cards also include households who have not sought work for the last three years or the card holders who have died, officials said.

To be sure, a job card is issued to a household and individual members of the particular family seeking work under the scheme can get their names registered in the same card.

MGNREGS is aimed at providing work to unskilled rural workers for at least 100 days in a year.

In the Aadhaar based payment system, wages of each worker would be directly deposited in their respective bank accounts verified by their unique identity cards or Aadhaar cards. The system was introduced in September last year by the union government to check malpractices and financial irregularities and ensure that workers get the wages timely and do not fall victim to middlemen.

There were complaints of wages of job card holders being siphoned off by middlemen.

The highest number of deletions of job card holders has been in Patna ( 2.95 lakh families), Vaishali ( 13.08 lakh families) and Samastipur ( 2.19 lakh families), as per data of the rural development department.

State’s MGNREGA commissioner Rahul Kumar said, “This is a routine exercise, done every year. It includes job card holders who have either migrated to other states or have not sought work for more than three years.”

How does Aadhaar seeding help

The Aadhaar seeding of bank accounts of job card holders would help check malpractices like pocketing a share of wages of job card holders by middlemen or local influential persons by keeping job cards in their possession. Such practices is common at the panchayat and village level, officials said.

Aadhaar seeding in Bihar

The MGNREGA commissioner said that out of 92 lakh active job card workers in the state, 88 lakh accounts have been verified and linked with their Aadhaar cards. “That is almost 96% of the total active workers,” he said. As per data, out of 2.42 crore families having job cards , 1.38 crore have been linked to Aadhaar cards.