Heat is on NREGA job card scheme
The All Assam Gramin Sramik Santha (AAGSS) and the Karbi Anglong and North Cachar Krishan Sramik Sabha (KANCKSS) have submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister through the office of the Deputy Commissioner demanding an CBI inquiry into the alleged NREGA scam involving issue of job cards which came to light after a Comptroller and Auditor General interim report. The organizations have alleged that original candidates who applied for the job cards have been ignored. They have demanded that the State Government hold a special session of the State Assembly to discuss the failure of the implementation of the NREGA scheme and issue a White Paper on the matter. The memorandum stated that there must be strict legally enforceable provisions whereby 100 days salary is cut from the pay of panchayat and block officers if 100 days job guarantee and payment of minimum wages is not ensured. It also stated that the policy of restricting the poor to a pre-fixed "BPL quota' be rolled back and publish a fresh list based on comprehensive ground survey. It also demanded that job cards must be issued to all poor families who demands it. The scheme must also guarantee 200 days of work per family in a year and make the number of job-card holders the basis for budgetary allocation for NREGA. Both the AAGSS and KANCKSS have stated that if the Government ignore their demands they would resort to an agitational programme from March 1.