As the numbers of the COVID-19 patient’s is raising actively, other than ensuring safety and health to the public it remains still a challenge for the Government to guarantee a minimum income to the migrant laborers who went back to the rural areas as a result of the loss of employment and difficulties in the urban areas. On June 20, 2020, for fulfilling this purpose, the Government has launched the Garib Kalyan Yojana for the benefit of migrant laborers allocating a budget of fifty thousand crores(50,000 crores) for the scheme. Let’s know a little more about the scheme and its purpose and objectives-
Highlights of the scheme-
1. The main objective of the scheme has been stated as “To support livelihood in rural areas by giving a constant stream of work and giving massive employment opportunities with a view to boosting the livelihood opportunities in rural India a scheme is being launched by the Government to empower and provide opportunities to such migrant laborers who have returned to rural areas and the rural citizens.
2. Laborers & migrant workers in states and districts of Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Jharkhand& Odisha shall be covered under the scheme.
3.The scheme will cover villages across 116 districts in the abovementioned six states that will have the facility to join the program through the Common Service Centers and the Krishi Vigyan Kendras.
4. The campaign will spread between 125 days with the mission mode to help the migrated workers. the scheme will be initiated from the village Telihar, Block Beldaur of Khageria district of Bihar, India.
5. The program will intend to ensure there is intensive execution of different types of work to a total of 25 types of various works to provide jobs and build infrastructure in various villages across the country with the allocated budget of Rs.50000 crores.
6. The scheme intends to cover rural citizens along with the 25000 migrant “returnees” across Bihar, UP, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, and Odisha under the campaign.
7. Under the campaign, following ministries have been instructed to allocate work –
a.Rural Development Ministry
b Panchayati Raj Department
c. Coal& mines Department
d. Telecom Ministry
e. Agricultural Ministry
f.Railway Ministry
g.Petroleum & Natural Gas Ministry
h. Environment
i. Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
j. Drinking-Water & Sanitation Ministry
k. New & Renewable Energy
8. Provisions related to gas pipelines, laying optical fiber for better internet connectivity, skill development, work under the District Mineral Fund, waste management, Aanganwadi centers, rural roads, rural housing, RURBAN Mission to rural areas to take the shape of Urban areas, Jaljeevan and other activities will be an important part of the 25 categories of work.
Conclusion–
The Government acknowledged that during the lockdown at least 25000 migrant laborers and their families have been registered and known to have migrated themselves to their rural villages and areas due to loss of employment. Thus, the scheme launched as per the recommendations of the 15th finance commission, the program will provide work for a continuous period of at least 4 months and will also enable asset creation in rural areas and empowering rural development.
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