The allocation for the national rural employment programme has seen no increase for 2025-26, raising the spectre of a stressed year ahead for the job scheme.
The budget has allocated ₹86,000 crore to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Development Act (MGNREGA), the same as 2024-25.
In 2023-24, the allocation for the MGNREGA was ₹60,000 crore but additional funds were provided and the actual expenditure stood at ₹89,153.71 crore, the budget document shows. No additional allocations for the scheme were made in 2024-25.
Chakradhar Buddha, a senior researcher at LibTech India that focuses on social sector schemes, said the available funds under the MGNREGA in 2025-26 would be much less than the recent years because of the heavy carry forward of arrears.
“The negative balance is ₹11,000 crore under the MGNREGA with two months remaining in this financial year. Since the MGNREGA has no additional funds, the arrears will be released from the allocation for 2025-26,” Buddha said.
The scheme has been stalled in Bengal since December 2021 after the Centre withheld funds over alleged irregularities.
“Are they thinking about Bengal workers at all? Or they have decided that Bengal will have no work this year too under the NREGA?” Buddha asked.
Nikhil Dey, who is associated with the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan that works for the proper implementation of the NREGA in Rajasthan, said the workers were unlikely to get wages in the next two months as there were no funds available under the scheme.
“We have two months left. People will not be paid wages since no funds have been allocated in the revised estimates. It is unconstitutional to delay wage to workers beyond 15 days of completion of work,” Dey said.
