MGNREGA: NGH VECs demand abolition of middlemen

SHILLONG: In an effort to ensure transparency and accountability in the functioning of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNRE-GA), functionaries from 21 Village Employment Councils (VECs) in North Garo Hills district have demanded the abolition of middlemen deeming it as a violation of the basic guidelines of the MNREGA.
In a joint representation submitted to the BDO of Resubelpara on Friday, functionaries from 21 VECs said that the resolution against the alleged anomaly that crept in the implementation of the schemes under MNREGA was also taken up at a circle meeting of the VECs held recently.
The meeting also expressed concern over the engagement of one Topstar N Marak of Omorpur village as the sole supplier of material components sanctioned under MNREGA.
In a letter, forum chairman, Elsilliah Sangma said that as the MNREGA is a right-based law governed by the principles of transparency, accountability and grass-root democracy, engaging a middleman in the guise of a supplier not only grossly violates its basic guidelines but could also erode the role, power and function of the duly constituted VECs thereby virtually reducing it to a mere skeletal entity, since the entire fund earmarked for material components will be channelized through the supplier driven by profit motives.
The circle meeting also unanimously resolved that the 21 VECs should respectively assume full responsibility of the material component of the Scheme as was done earlier. It also took view of the dismal scenario of the VECs falling far below the targeted 100 man-days of guaranteed employment, citing lethargy and red-tapism as major causes for the same.