NREGA / MGNREGA – Functions, Check Balance on NREGA Account

Last Updated : Dec. 17, 2022, 10:26 a.m.

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, also called National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, is a social welfare measure that assures or guarantees “the right to work” in our country’s rural areas. The act was renamed MGNREGA at the time of its launch in 2005. The MGNREGA eligibility requirements have been maintained as simply as possible to allow a vast area of rural people to take advantage of the programme.

The main precept of this scheme is to give 100 days of paid work legally in rural areas of India to improve the quality of their living.

Where does MGNREGA Function in India?

The MGNREGA scheme entails parts of the rural areas in India. The government will provide paid work for 100 days to every household in a rural area with family members who have volunteered to perform unskilled labour by the current stipulations of the MGNREGA.

The government would use these rural labourers’ work in rural India to build wells, roads, ponds, and canals, among other long-term fixed assets.

What are the Benefits of NREGA?

There are some major advantages of the NREGA scheme. They are as under:

1. Guaranteeing employment to the rural workers in India with pre-decided wages.
2. Utilising land and water resources in a fine, well manner eventually leads the country towards fine growth.
3. Increase in social integration for the employees in rural India.
4. Establishment of good infrastructure in rural areas.
5. Utilising unskilled labour resources of the country in the best way possible.
6. The strength of the gram panchayats improves and leads to growth in rural areas.
7. The rise in India’s economic growth.

What are the Eligibility Criteria for the MGNREGA Scheme?

The central government oversees the MGNREGA, which applies to rural areas in all states. The below-mentioned criteria have to be followed to be eligible for the MGNREGA scheme:

• To seek NREGA scheme benefits, the individual must belong to have Indian citizenship.
• The individual registering under the scheme must belong to the local area, which means only a person belonging to the gram panchayat could apply to the scheme.
• While applying for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act Scheme, the individual is expected to be aged 18 years.
• The individual must apply for unskilled labour under the scheme MGNREGA.

How to Check the Balance of an NREGA Account?

Although there is a portion of the information on the Job Card that an applicant could use to check their NREGA wage for an amount period, there are yet to be any other suggestions to be followed to check the Account Balance online.

An NREGA job card consists of the details on how many days the employer hired the employee, as well as the wage for each day of the job that has been completed. Every state has a different daily wage rate, which changes every day.

You can use the information from the NREGA daily wage by State List to see the balance of the MGNREGA account regarding forthcoming wages.

MGNREGA Job Card and it’s Features

The NREGA job card consists of the following details of the applicant:

1. The name, the applicant’s father’s name, age, gender, bank account number, post office / bank account number, address, etc., of each MGNREGA applicant in the household
2. Photograph of the NREGA cardholder
3. Work history of the individual
4. Details of employment given.
5. Details on the payment of unemployment benefits

To apply for an MGNREGA job card, you could visit NREGA’s official website and download the application form for free.

Download the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act App

The MGNREGA app provides access to a wealth of information, including a state-by-state list of the operating details for every Rural Gram Panchayat in India, the total amount of money paid by the government to each Gram Panchayat, information about the work completed under the MGNREGA programme, information about new programmes, and much more.

Users of the app can find out what jobs are accessible to them in their local Gram Panchayat region based on these facts.

Now the MGNREGA scheme has enhanced India, and the growth of rural regions has improved over time. The common nature among rural people to migrate to urban areas has decreased due to this scheme. When migration happens from rural to urban, the chances of these regions getting into development will reduce. But now, due to the NREGA scheme, migration has been reduced to a greater extent.

Conclusion

MGNREGA was established to ” improve livelihood stability in rural regions by supplying hundred days of assured wage employment in a financial year to every rural household whose senior members agree to do unskilled manual labour”. The programme aims to employ within 5 kilometers of an applicant’s home with minimum wages. As a result, employment under MGNREGA is a right recognised by law.

FAQs

1. When was the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act of Mahatma Gandhi notified?

A notice in the Gazette announced the passage of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act on September 7th, 2005. It became effective on February 2nd, in the year 2006.

2. Is the Employment Guarantee Act only applicable in certain States or regions?

No, it is used in every rural area of the nation.

With effect in February 2006, MGNREGA was implemented in the first 200 districts. The government then expanded it to an additional 113 and 17 districts with effect from April 1st and May 15th, 2007, respectively. After April 1st, 2008, the act covered the remaining districts. The act is currently being implemented in 644 districts of the nation with a sizable rural population.

3. When did the Indian Parliament enact the scheme Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act?

On August 23rd, 2005, the Indian Parliament approved the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act scheme.

4. Job Cards: What Are They?

The MGNREGA Job Card is a crucial document that lists the benefits that employees are entitled to. It ensures openness, safeguards against fraud, and gives registered households the legal right to apply for jobs.

5. How is the term "household" used in MGNREGA?

A “household” is a group of people connected by blood, marriage, or adoption who typically live together, eat together, or use the same ration card.