Centre asks states to form MNREGA labour groups

Government on Tuesday asked the states to form labour groups of MNREGA workers at the village level to improve the quality of works to be undertaken under the programme.

An advisory in this regard has been issued to the states, a Rural Development Ministry official said. He said such groups of MNREGA workers are being formed to improve their participation in implementation of the programme and to ensure provision of entitlements provided under it.

The official said all MNREGA workers part of a household in possession of job card, and whose members have worked at least 10 days in the previous year, should become part of labour groups which will also be given unique identification numbers.

In the first phase, state governments are asked to undertake labour group formations in 2500 Intensive Participatory Planning Exercise (IPPE) blocks.

In its advisory, the Centre has suggested that the preferable size of a labour group is 10 to 15 households with job cards. They should preferably be located contiguous at the neighbourhood level --hamlet-- but where localities are spread out, smaller groups should be formed.