The Central government has announced the minimum wages for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) for the fiscal year 2021-22. The announcement, which came on March 15, saw several states receiving minimal increase in the daily wages of the MGNREGA workers.

According to the Centre’s notification, the daily wage under MGNREGA has increased by a rupee in Congress-ruled Rajasthan and it hasn’t increased at all in Kerala and Lakshadweep.

Meanwhile, the notification witnessed maximum increase of daily wage in the Northeastern state of Meghalaya — Rs 23. The MGNREGA daily wagers receive Rs 203 as of now but will receive Rs 226 in the next fiscal year (April 2021-March 2022).

For the next fiscal, the maximum wages for MGNREGA are in the state of Haryana — Rs 315 per day while Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh pay the least (Rs 193 per day) in the Central government scheme.

In Rajasthan, resentment amongst the labourers is high as they complain that from fuel to food, cost of living is higher than ever before and the increase of a rupee a day in the wages is lackadaisical.

According to the Union ministry of rural development, there is no separate mechanism for calculating the MGNREGA wages. It is mentioned in the MGNREGA Act (2005) that the labour cost will not be directly linked with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) that is used to determine inflation.

When enquired about the formula used to calculate the wages of the unskilled labourers under MGNREGA, Rohit Kumar Singh, additional chief secretary, rural development and panchayati raj department, told Gaon Connection, “These rates are determined by the Central government. I personally do not know how the process unfolds. The state government has nothing to do with it”.

Demand for CPI-based wages

A number of organisations working on labour rights and rural development demand that the wage determination should be on the basis of CPI (Rural). They are of the opinion that since MGNREGA is a scheme for the rural parts of India, the calculation of its wages should be on the basis of the markets and inflation in the countryside.

Noted social activist Nikhil Dey, who is the founder of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, told Gaon Connection that he has been raising this demand for a long time now. The Centre had formed a seven-member committee in 2014 to submit a report on the MGNREGA wages calculation system. Dey was a member of the committee.

As per the report submitted by the committee, it was suggested that in a certain state — the minimum labour rate or the MGNREGA wages — whichever was greater, should be implemented. Apart from this, it suggested that every year, the MGNREGA wages should be raised on the basis of CPI (Rural) in the given state.

“Whatever wages are increased, they are done on the basis of CPI (Agriculture) or wholesale price index. So, whatever wages have been raised, they have been on the CPI (Agriculture) and wholesale price index in Rajasthan and it is apt,” Rajasthan MGNREGA commissioner PC Kishan told Gaon Connection.

“This formula is always used for implementing the MGNREGA wages in every state. The state has no complaints with the Centre,” he added.

Read this report in Hindi