About MGNREGS

• The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005, guarantees 100 days of work each financial year to any rural household willing to do public work-related unskilled manual work at the statutory minimum wage.
• In addition to this, there is a provision for upto additional 50 days of unskilled wage employment in a financial year in drought/natural calamity notified rural areas. The State Governments may make provision for providing additional days beyond the period guaranteed under the Act from their own funds. 

• The act makes it obligatory for the State to give rural households work on demand. In case such employment is not provided within 15 days of registration, the applicant becomes eligible for an unemployment allowance.
• The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) was initiated as directed in MGNREGA to implement the mandate of the Act.
• The Ministry of Rural Development (MRD) is monitoring the entire implementation of the MGNREGS in association with state governments.

Key Features of the Scheme

• Every rural household has the right to register under MGNREGA.
• One-third of the stipulated workforce must be women. 
• Work site facilities such as creche, drinking water and shade have to be provided.
• The employment will be provided within a radius of 5 km: if it is above 5 km extra wage will be paid.
• The wages are revised according to the Consumer Price Index-Agricultural Labourers (CPI-AL).
• While 60 per cent of the total expenditure has to be on wage, 40 per cent spending has to be on the creation of material assets.
• Permissible works predominantly include water and soil conservation, afforestation and land development works.
• Work site facilities such as crèche, drinking water, shade have to be provided.
• Gram sabhas must recommend the works that are to be undertaken and at least 50% of the works must be executed by them.
• Social Audit has to be done by the Gram Sabha.

Funding

• Funding is shared between the centre and the states. 
• The funding pattern of the scheme comprises 100% funding for unskilled labour cost and 75% of the material cost by Central Government and rest shall be borne by the State Government. 

Why in News?

• Facing less than a lukewarm response to Project Unnati, which aims to reduce dependence on the MGNREGS by imparting skill training to its beneficiaries, the Union Rural Development Ministry wants to link performances of the States under the project with its labour budget for the upcoming financial year.
• Since its inception in 2020, just a little over 25,000 persons have been trained under the project, falling far short of its target of 2 lakh. The project was slated to end in March 2022 but has now been extended by two years.

About Project Unnati 

• Unnati was launched with the intention of upgrading the skill base of the MGNREGS workers to help them transition from partial employment to full employment, thereby reducing their dependence on the employment guarantee scheme.
• The aim of the project is to train one adult member (18-45 years) of a household that has completed 100 days of work under the MGNREGS.
• The selected candidate is eligible for wages on a par with that given under the MGNREGS during the period of the training.

Scheme’s Performance

• The performance so far has been far below the 20% target. 
• Under the project, the selected candidates are skilled using three established training programmes — the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Kaushal Yojana (DDU-GKY), the Rural Self Training Institute (RSETI) and the Krishi Vigyan Kendra.
• The Grameen Kaushal Yojana is a placement-linked programme, in which 70% of the trained candidates have to be compulsorily employed with a minimum salary of ₹6,000 per month.
• The RSETI is for entrepreneurial skills where persons in the age group of 18-45 get short-term residential training with long-term hand-holding support for up to two years.
• A Krishi Vigyan Kendra trains candidates in trades related to the agricultural sectors.

reference:

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/skill-training-of-rural-jobs-scheme-workers-lags-centre-blames-it-on-the-states/article66169948.ece