Tamil Nadu leads in receiving funds for rural employment scheme, sparking political debate; concerns raised over fund allocation.
| Photo Credit:
MOORTHY G
Tamil Nadu has emerged as the top recipient of funds from the Central government for the guaranteed rural employment scheme during the current fiscal year FY26 so far, followed by Uttar Pradesh and poll-bound Bihar, officials stated.
The top 10 recipients also include Karnataka, which has an opposition government. These figures are significant against the backdrop of considerable political debate and allegations by opposition-ruled states regarding fund distribution under various schemes, including Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS), which are primarily funded by the Central government with a defined state share. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is one such CSS.
“Since April 1, Tamil Nadu has received over ₹2,900 crore, while Uttar Pradesh has received over ₹2,100 crore, and Bihar has received around ₹2,000 crore,” a senior government official informed businessline.
Furthermore, based on the annual expenditure for different states in FY24, Tamil Nadu received nearly 38 per cent of the total allocation, Uttar Pradesh around 22 per cent, and Bihar approximately 30 per cent. The official acknowledged that some of the current fiscal year’s disbursements might include pending demands from the last fiscal year, but the exact amount could not be determined at present.
MGNREGS is a demand-driven scheme, and the release of funds to the States/UTs is a continuous process. The nodal Ministry, the Ministry of Rural Development, seeks additional funds for the scheme’s implementation from the Ministry of Finance as needed. The Budget Estimates (BE) for FY26 stand at ₹86,000 crore, which is the same as the BE and Revised Estimates (RE) of FY 2024-25. Notably, this amount was also the same as the RE for fiscal year 2023-24.
The total budget allocation for the scheme has also raised concerns for a Parliamentary Committee. In a report submitted last month, the committee emphasised that the scheme provides a legal right to work for the most economically disadvantaged sections of the rural population willing to work. “It is a last resort of succour for the jobless section of society who have no other means of livelihood to feed their family members,” the committee noted.
The committee urged a fresh assessment of the fund allocation requirement, given the established procedure that MGNREGA, being a demand-driven scheme, allows for funds to be increased at the RE stage accordingly. The committee recommended that the Department of Rural Development more realistically assess the continued high demand for jobs under MGNREGS at the ground level and press the Ministry of Finance for an increased allocation.
The committee also noted, based on data from the Rural Development Department, that approximately 50.31 lakh job cards were deleted in the year 2021-22 due to minor spelling errors or mismatches in Aadhaar details. It stated that the figures have not significantly decreased since then, and thousands of eligible workers are regularly being denied work under MGNREGS.
In response, the Centre has issued Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) to all States/UTs with clear guidelines regarding the deletion and restoration of job cards. The SoPs emphasise the importance of due process, including the publication of draft lists of job cards marked for deletion, verification at Gram Sabhas, and the right of appeal for affected workers.
Published on May 19, 2025
Tamil Nadu leads in receiving funds for rural employment scheme, sparking political debate; concerns raised over fund allocation.
| Photo Credit:
MOORTHY G
Tamil Nadu has emerged as the top recipient of funds from the Central government for the guaranteed rural employment scheme during the current fiscal year FY26 so far, followed by Uttar Pradesh and poll-bound Bihar, officials stated.
The top 10 recipients also include Karnataka, which has an opposition government. These figures are significant against the backdrop of considerable political debate and allegations by opposition-ruled states regarding fund distribution under various schemes, including Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS), which are primarily funded by the Central government with a defined state share. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is one such CSS.
“Since April 1, Tamil Nadu has received over ₹2,900 crore, while Uttar Pradesh has received over ₹2,100 crore, and Bihar has received around ₹2,000 crore,” a senior government official informed businessline.
Furthermore, based on the annual expenditure for different states in FY24, Tamil Nadu received nearly 38 per cent of the total allocation, Uttar Pradesh around 22 per cent, and Bihar approximately 30 per cent. The official acknowledged that some of the current fiscal year’s disbursements might include pending demands from the last fiscal year, but the exact amount could not be determined at present.
MGNREGS is a demand-driven scheme, and the release of funds to the States/UTs is a continuous process. The nodal Ministry, the Ministry of Rural Development, seeks additional funds for the scheme’s implementation from the Ministry of Finance as needed. The Budget Estimates (BE) for FY26 stand at ₹86,000 crore, which is the same as the BE and Revised Estimates (RE) of FY 2024-25. Notably, this amount was also the same as the RE for fiscal year 2023-24.
The total budget allocation for the scheme has also raised concerns for a Parliamentary Committee. In a report submitted last month, the committee emphasised that the scheme provides a legal right to work for the most economically disadvantaged sections of the rural population willing to work. “It is a last resort of succour for the jobless section of society who have no other means of livelihood to feed their family members,” the committee noted.
The committee urged a fresh assessment of the fund allocation requirement, given the established procedure that MGNREGA, being a demand-driven scheme, allows for funds to be increased at the RE stage accordingly. The committee recommended that the Department of Rural Development more realistically assess the continued high demand for jobs under MGNREGS at the ground level and press the Ministry of Finance for an increased allocation.
The committee also noted, based on data from the Rural Development Department, that approximately 50.31 lakh job cards were deleted in the year 2021-22 due to minor spelling errors or mismatches in Aadhaar details. It stated that the figures have not significantly decreased since then, and thousands of eligible workers are regularly being denied work under MGNREGS.
In response, the Centre has issued Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) to all States/UTs with clear guidelines regarding the deletion and restoration of job cards. The SoPs emphasise the importance of due process, including the publication of draft lists of job cards marked for deletion, verification at Gram Sabhas, and the right of appeal for affected workers.
Published on May 19, 2025
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It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution
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