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The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill, 2011 was passed by Lok Sabha yesterday. The Bill will be discussed next by Rajya Sabha. Unlike the Lok Sabha, where the UPA government holds a majority in the House, the composition is different in Rajya Sabha. As on 28th December 2011, the total strength of Rajya Sabha is 243 members . The UPA has a combined strength of 95 members in the House, well below the 50% mark. (Of course, there will be some absent members which will change the arithmetic a bit.) The passage of the Bill thus depends on the stand taken by other political parties and their numbers in the House. Here's how the figures stack up:
Party | Numbers |
Indian National Congress (INC) | 71 |
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) | 7 |
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) | 7 |
All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) | 6 |
Jammu and Kashmir National Conference | 2 |
Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) | 1 |
Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) | 1 |
Total UPA | 95 |
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) | 51 |
Janata Dal (United) | 8 |
Shiv Sena (SS) | 4 |
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) | 3 |
Total NDA | 66 |
Communist Party of India (Marxist) | 13 |
Communist Party of India (CPI) | 5 |
All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) | 1 |
Total Left | 19 |
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP ) | 18 |
Biju Janata Dal (BJD ) | 6 |
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (AIADMK ) | 5 |
Samajwadi Party (SP ) | 5 |
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD ) | 4 |
Asom Gana Parishad (AGP ) | 2 |
Bodoland People's Front (BPF ) | 1 |
Indian National Lok Dal (INLD ) | 1 |
Lok Janasakti Party (LJP ) | 1 |
Mizo National Front (MNF ) | 1 |
Nagaland People's Front (NPF ) | 1 |
Telugu Desam Party (TDP ) | 4 |
Nominated | 8 |
Independent and others | 6 |
Total | 243 |
In the recently concluded Monsoon Session of Parliament , the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development released a report on the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Development Act, 2005 (MGNREGA). This blog provides a brief introduction to the key provisions of MGNREGA , followed by an overview of the major findings and recommendations of the Standing Committee.
I. MGNREGA: A brief introduction
A. Objectives: MGNREGA, which is the largest work guarantee programme in the world, was enacted in 2005 with the primary objective of guaranteeing 100 days of wage employment per year to rural households. Secondly, it aims at addressing causes of chronic poverty through the 'works' (projects) that are undertaken, and thus ensuring sustainable development. Finally, there is an emphasis on strengthening the process of decentralisation through giving a significant role to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in planning and implementing these works.
B. Key features:
MGNREGA was implemented in phases, starting from February 2006, and at present it covers all districts of the country with the exception of those that have a 100% urban population. The Act provides a list of works that can be undertaken to generate employment related to water conservation, drought proofing, land development, and flood control and protection works. Table 1 provides information regarding employment generation and expenditure under MGNREGA.
Table 1: MGNREGA: Key indicators
Year |
Number of households provided employment (in crore) |
Average number of person days of work per household |
Total Expenditure (in lakh) |
2006-07 |
2.10 |
43 |
8823.35 |
2007-08 |
3.39 |
42 |
15856.88 |
2008-09 |
4.51 |
48 |
27250.10 |
2009-10 |
5.25 |
54 |
37905.23 |
2010-11 |
5.49 |
47 |
39377.27 |
2011-12* |
4.99 |
43 |
38034.69 |
2012-13** |
4.25 |
36 |
28073.51 |
Source: Standing Committee on Rural Development; PRS. Note: *Provisional ** As on 31.01.2013
II. Findings and Recommendations of the Standing Committee on Rural Development
A. Achievements: The Standing Committee highlighted several achievements of MGNREGA in the seven years of its implementation, especially:
B. Challenges: However, the Committee found several issues with the implementation of the scheme. As Table 1 (above) shows, the average number of days of employment provided to households has been lower than the mandated 100 days, and has been decreasing since 2010-11. Key issues that the Committee raised include
Table 2: Work completion rate
Year |
Work completion rate (%) |
2006-07 |
46.34 |
2007-08 |
45.99 |
2008-09 |
43.76 |
2009-10 |
48.94 |
2010-11 |
50.86 |
2011-12* |
20.25 |
2012-13* |
15.02 |
Total | 33.22 |
Source: Standing Committee on Rural Development. Note: * As on 30.01.2013
C. Recommendations: The Committee made the following recommendations, based on its findings: