Guwahati: The Ministry of Rural Development has disbursed Rs 391 crore outstanding dues to Meghalaya as material and administrative components pertaining to MGNREGA implementation in the state.

This was confirmed by the State Rural Employment Society (SRES) of the Community and Rural Development Department of the Government of Meghalaya.

This amount has been released to meet the program's pending liabilities for the fiscal year 2021-22, which could not previously be released due to a variety of factors such as the merging of all subsidiary accounts into a single State Nodal Account (SNA), a major revamp in the NREGA soft module capturing all details of staff, vendors (both administrative and material), skilled workers, and others aimed at increasing transparency and accountability in fund transfer. The last fund received by the state was for Rs 49 crores in March 2022.

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It should be noted that Chief Minister Conrad Sangma personally raised the issue with the Union Minister of Rural Development, and it was later followed up on by the Minister of Community and Rural Development and the Principal Secretary, Community, and Rural Development Department, in order for the Centre to release the funds as soon as possible.

This amount will be distributed to the different village employment councils (VECs) within this month after they are granted by the Central government and credited to the State exchequer. While there are no such concerns with the salary component, which is generally paid within 15 days after muster roll submission, technical challenges have resulted in an accidental delay with the material components.

Meghalaya has a unique necessity in that MGNREGA is implemented not only for wage employment, but also for the establishment of long-term assets in rural regions, which provides the door for other developmental activities to find a way into rural areas.

The State Rural Employment Society (SRES) has commended VECs for their exceptional performance in administering the MGNREGA plan, not only for creating wage employment but also for undertaking many creative development projects that help rural people in general. It further said that Meghalaya remains one of the top achievers in terms of plan execution.

MGNREGA is mandated to use at least 60% of the money collected for natural resource management (NRM) each year.

With the start of the new fiscal year, the program's aims are focused on Natural Resource Management, water conservation and harvesting, and climate change reversal in order to bring about a paradigm shift in the implementation processes through continuous discussion and understanding of the current requirements of intervention.