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Rural Employment Guarantee Act

Cong for centralised monitoring In an effort to deny the opposition of any credit for the UPA government's flagship programme, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), a Congress delegation led by its apparent-heir Rahul Gandhi today asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today to introduce centralised monitoring of this ambitious scheme. "Since the Centre allots a large amount of money for this programme, it should monitor how state governments are spending the funds allocated for the NREGA,' the delegation told the Prime Minister when it called on him in his Parliament House office to discuss the implementation of the programme. This suggestion follows serious concern in the Congress that opposition-ruled states are taking credit for this scheme as the state governments are responsible for its implementation although the funds are provided by the Centre. Faced with a series of Assembly polls this year, the Congress does not want the Opposition to walk away with all the accolades and would instead like the party to reap electoral benefit from this scheme, especially since it was launched at its behest. Rahul, who had led a similar delegation to the Prime Minister to press for the universalisation of the programme and succeeded in his mission, said they had given several suggestions on improving the implementation of the programme. "I don't think it is fair to lambast the programme

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