The state government will soon launch an employment guarantee scheme for urban unskilled workers on the lines of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), officials from urban development and housing department said on Sunday.

Mukhyamantri SHRAMIK (Shahri Rozgar Manjuri For Kamgar) Yojna, which is the brainchild of chief minister Hemant Soren, will not only ensure 100 days of paid work for unskilled workers in urban areas but also provide unemployment allowance to those who do not get work under the scheme within 15 days, officials said.

“The scheme has been formulated. We are waiting for the cabinet's approval,” said state urban development secretary Vinay Kumar Choubey. “I think we should be able to roll out the scheme on the ground in a couple of months,” he added.

Once the scheme is launched, Jharkhand will become the second state in India to have a full-fledged employment scheme for unskilled workers in urban areas. At present, Kerala runs a similar scheme for unskilled workers in urban areas. However, there is no provision of unemployment allowance in the scheme that runs in Kerala, said a highly placed official in the urban development department here.

A press communique from the department on Sunday stated that the unemployment allowance given to workers will be one-fourth of the basic pay in the first 30 days. Workers will get half of the basic pay in the second month of unemployment and full basic pay if they do not get work even in the third month, the communique further said.

The total budget for the scheme is yet to be finalised and government officials chose to remain tight-lipped about it.

The government is also working on a software for the scheme with the help of National Informatics Centre (NIC). Registered workers in the scheme will also get job cards like the ones enrolled in MGNREGA, officials said.

Economist Harishwar Dayal said the scheme will help in providing employment to the migrant workers who have returned to Jharkhand during the lockdown. “It is a well-meaning initiative. Even the poor in urban areas need employment guarantee, and this scheme will be of great help,” he said.

According to the state government, more than five lakh migrant workers, mostly working in metro cities, have returned to Jharkhand since the imposition of the lockdown. Most of these workers have been jobless in Jharkhand and are waiting to return to work once the lockdown is eased, sources said.

Hemant has already received acclaim from around the country for his efforts in bringing stranded migrants back to Jharkhand. The employment scheme, a close aide of the chief minister said, will provide employment to many of the rescued workers and address the opposition party's concerns over unemployment in the state.

As the scheme, the workers will be given work under urban local bodies, government sources said. They could also be used for laying pipelines and telephone lines, and also as cleanliness workers, they added.