CPIML Bihar State Secretary Kunal said that the 2018-19 CAG report confirms the Bihar government's utter failure in implementation of government schemes, rampant institutional corruption and neglect of MNREGA and related issues that our party has been raising consistently.
Now CAG also says that there is need for extensive reforms in MNREGA. According to the report, only 3.34 of the 60.88 landless people surveyed have job cards, whereas Bihar has the highest number of daily wage earners (88.61%). So far only 8-10% workers are contracted. On an average workers are able to get only 34-45 days' work. 36 lakhs of the 42 lakh works remain uncompleted. The rate of employment in MNREGA has reduced to 2% in 2019 from 14% in 2014. It will be remembered that the Modi government first came to power in 2014. The report tells us that the Modi government has horribly neglected MNREGA and landless workers. It also tells us that only 1% of the families asking for 100 days' employment have been able to get work. These statistics are from 2018-19. Clearly, the situation has worsened after the lockdown and Covid. For the last one year all schemes are lying shattered. The government must consider how this large population of workers and poor people is struggling to make ends meet. The government is giving them neither employment nor compensation for lockdown-induced distress.
The MNREGA scheme is completely mired in corruption. According to one report Rs 39 crores were taken out in 39 days during the lockdown out of MNREGA funds in Bhojpur District, but no work was given. No work of any sort was to be seen on the ground. CPIML demanded from the government an enquiry to be conducted into this.
CAG has also exposed misappropriation of Rs 164.98 crores in tree plantation. Many kinds of irregularities have also been found in bridge construction. Matters like giving a contractor Rs 66 crores even before technical approval have come to light. There is hardly any department where such irregularities have not taken place. Institutional corruption has become the hallmark of the BJP-JDU government.
