Data Point: 10 Lakh ‘fake’ MGNREGA Job Cards Deleted

December 6, 2023

Context: In the last two financial years – 2021-22 and 2022-23 under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) over 10 lakh fake mgnrega job cards have been deleted.

Mgnrega Job Cards Deletions: 2021-22 and 2022-23

In 2021-22, 3.06 lakh job cards were deleted in the NREGS due to reasons categorized as ‘fake mgnrega job cards.’
In the subsequent year, 7.43 lakh job cards were deleted during 2022-23.
State-wise Deletions: Fake Job Cards
- Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of deleted fake job cards, with 67,937 in 2021-22 and a substantial increase to 2.96 lakh in 2022-23.
- Madhya Pradesh followed closely, with 50,817 fake mgnrega job cards deleted in 2021-22 and 1.14 lakh in 2022-23.
- West Bengal reported significantly lower figures, with only 388 fake mgnrega job cards deleted in 2021-22 and an increase to 5,263 in 2022-23.
- Reasons for Deletion: Though the deletion and issuance of new job cards are routine practices, the primary reason behind these deletions is implementing the Aadhaar-based Payment System (ABPS), according to the Economic and Political Weekly.
- In January 2023, MoRD mandated using ABPS to process all wage payments in MGNREGA, starting from February 1, 2023.

Aadhaar-based Payment System (ABPS): According to the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), ABPS is “a unique payment system which uses Aadhaar number as a central key for electronically channelising government subsidies and benefits in the Aadhaar-Enabled Bank Accounts (AEBA) of the beneficiaries”.

About MGNREGA:

MGNREGA Act was enacted in 2005 as a social welfare program by the Ministry of Rural Development.
Objective: To guarantee 100 days of employment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household willing to do public work-related unskilled manual work.

Key Features:

Legal Right to Work: For adult members of rural households, at least one-third of beneficiaries are women.
Wage Provision: Wages must be paid according to the wages specified for agricultural laborers in the state under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
Time-bound guarantee of work: Employment must be provided within 15 days of being demanded failing which an ‘unemployment allowance’ must be given.
Decentralized Planning: Gram sabhas must recommend the works that are to be undertaken and they must execute at least 50% of the works.