'No user fee document, No job'; Gruelling test for Kerala's poor families

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Accusations are now being raised against panchayat authorities for denying jobs to the poor who depend on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme to survive starvation.

According to some panchayath secretaries, people in need of employment should submit a 'user fee document’; proving that all inorganic wastes are removed from their respective houses. Complaints were raised against these secretaries but saw no action.

The power given to secretaries by the government to deny benefits to people not submitting the ‘user fee document' is to blame for the high-handedness. The only central criterion for applying for employment under the Employment Guarantee Scheme is the employment card number. It is in this situation that officials collectively take a different stand. Such complaints have also reached the employment ombudsmen of various districts.

People with no idea about the rules of panchayat and MGNREGA ACT are now at the helm of power, thereby instilling doomsday for the poor people in the state.

Rules:

1. 100 days of employment should be provided if requested by the worker with an employment card. It is a right, not a service.

2. The job seekers have no clear idea about the MGNREGA ACT and will have to leave disappointed hearing what the secretaries have to say.

'User fee' is taken to prevent the dumping and burning of inorganic waste. The fee is 50 rupees in panchayats, 70 rupees in municipalities and 100 rupees in city councils. Harita Karma Sena members will visit houses every month to collect garbage. This has nothing to do with the MGNREGA scheme.