MREGA- A Ray of New Hope

Two years ago Biswajeet lost his job and his family was forced to eat once in a day and his children were called off from school. Now he can afford three meals a day and today his elder son, who is in 4th grade, stood first in his class. MREGA brought this change into their life.
On 25 august 2005, the UPA coalition government brought the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act. The act aims at providing guaranteed employment to the unemployed adult members of a family for 100 days with a minimum wages of Rs. 100 per day. The act was passed to fight with one of the major predicament in the path of development of the country i.e. unemployment. “I was not been able to find any job after my field was destroyed because of heavy rains, this scheme provides the food for my children” told Chandan, a farmer in Ferozepur who was benefitted by MREGA.
“The government scheme helped me send my children back to school” told Biswajeet. “However three months employment is not enough. The government should increase the number of days so that a person can at least have enough time to save some money to get back on his feet.” he further added.
The scheme till now has provided employment to 3.57 crore household and in the financial year 2009-10 the government is planning to spend Rs. 39,100 crores ($8 billion) for the scheme. The process of getting registered for the employment scheme is very easy and simple. “The people who come for employment registration needs to give the information about their name, address, age and 2 photographs in the gram panchayat office of their district” told by a gram Panchayat worker. After the submission of the details a job card is issued to the registered person. If the government fails to provide the job in 15 days, they will provide the person with the unemployment remuneration.
The scheme also includes the agenda of women empowerment and thus one third of the employees will be women according to the act. “I get employment because of the scheme. Now I can also earn with my husband and can provide better facilities to my family” Said Priyanka.
There is no discrimination based on gender under this scheme. Each and every employee irrespective of being male and female gets equal wages. “We all get wages same as others get. No one is paid more or less” told Sangeeta.

“Earlier we were not been able to even have one time proper meal but now every member of the family is properly fed” said Puspa Rani. This is the case with every unemployed of the country. Unemployment and poverty are a part of vicious circle wherein once one entered will not been able to come out ever. The country will become developed when each and everyone present in the country will developed. Despite being the fastest growing economy we still are developing and not become developed just because there is the development of only half of the country’s population, the other half is doomed and is living in the well of poverty, unemployment and illiteracy. But the step taken by the government will help many to come out of this vicious circle and darkened well to start a new innings of their life.