THE INDIRA GANDHI URBAN EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEME 

CONTEXT

The Indira Gandhi Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme has been rolled out in Rajasthan intending to provide economic support to the poor and needy families living in the cities through work to be provided on demand for 100 days a year. The government has touted it as the country’s biggest scheme to give guaranteed jobs to the people residing in cities, on the lines of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act for villagers.

AIM

• Reduce distress among the urban population
• Improve wage rate in the labour market.

ELIGIBILITY

• Age group 18-60
• Target group – poor ,destitute people, especially those who lost their livelihood during the pandemic will be given preference
• A person residing within the limits of urban local bodies is eligible to demand and get employment in the identified segments.
• There is no income limit
• At least 50 persons in each ward of urban local bodies will be given employment and the work permitted under the scheme will be approved and executed through committees at the state, district, and local body levels.
• The state government will also reward the municipal bodies doing good work under the scheme.

PROVISIONS

• The cost of materials and the payment for the labour for work of general nature will be in the ratio of 25:75 and will vary for special work which needs technical expertise.
• The state government's Department of Local Bodies will be responsible for the scheme implementation.
• A Jan Aadhar card introduces by the state government or its registration slip will be required for registration which can be done at e –Mitras centers.
• The wages will be paid at the rate of rupees 259 a day to unskilled labourers.and rupees 283 a day to skilled labourers.The “mates” or supervisors on top of the labourers will get rupees 271 a day.
• As part of convergence, the people engaged under employment elsewhere in other schemes already have a material component, which requires the labour
• The state government can add new tasks or amend the ones already included in the list.

BUDGETARY ALLOCATION

A budgetary allocation of rupees 800 crores was announced by the Chief Minister for 2022-23. More than 3.5 lakh people across the state have got themselves registered under the scheme so far and job cards have been issued to 2.25 lakh of them.

WHY NEEDED

• Growing distress among urban poor
• Higher unemployment rates in urban areas
• Persistent high inflation
• Prevalence of low wages and poor quality informal work in urban areas.
• Moreover, rural unemployment is mostly seasonal, unemployed people in the cities face problems throughout the year.

CATEGORIES OF TASKS

1) ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION –involving tree plantation in public places, maintenance of parks, and watering plants on footpaths and dividers.

2) WATER CONSERVATION-involving cleanliness and improvement of ponds, lakes, and step wells, construction, repair, and cleaning of rainwater harvesting structures, and restoration of water sources.

Other categories are heritage conservation, removal of encroachments and illegal boards, hoardings and banners, stopping defacement of property, and service-related works.

FOCUS

The initiative may benefit the ruling Congress in the run-up to the 2023 state assembly elections, as a major step to address the plight of the urban poor, which had not received much attention earlier.

• The identification of unemployed youths in urban areas may require an approach different from the one adopted in the villages for MGNREGA
• The jobs provided under the scheme will be different than those in the rural areas and will need a more skilled workforce.

SIMILAR SCHEMES OPERATIVE IN OTHER STATES

• Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee scheme in Kerala.
• Urban Wage Employment Initiative under UNNATI in Orissa.
• Mukhya Mantri Shramik Yojana in Jharkhand.
• Mukhya Mantri Yuva Swabhiman Yojana Madhya Pradesh.