Govt begins restoration work by engaging people under MGNREGA scheme
Kolkata: The state government's immediate focus after the devastation of Cyclone Amphan is on providing for those who have lost almost everything in South and North 24-Parganas. According to the specified 28 works under MGNREGA scheme, fast execution of
restoration work and creating job opportunities for the
aforementioned people is on priority.
The move was made following Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's direction, after she assessed the damage caused by the cyclone from the control room in Nabanna on May 20.
In a letter dated May 21, Additional Chief Secretary of the state Panchayat and Rural Development department MV Rao wrote to district magistrates and all the district programme coordinators stating that "heavy rainfall with massive storm due to cyclone Amphan caused severe damage to rural assets and water logging in several areas of the districts."
The 28 categories that have been taken up include, construction of feeder canal, distributory canal, minor canal, sub-minor canal and diversion channel. Priorities also have to be given to renovation and repairing of compound wall for government run schools, crematorium, community playground, cyclone shelter, rural haats, cattle shelters, bitumen top roads, fisheries ponds for community, food grain storage building, panchayat buildings, anganwadi centres and check dams.
Mainly embankments, power sub-stations, houses, roads, electricity poles, small bridges and culverts were almost washed away in major parts of East Midnapore, North and South 24-Parganas.
When contacted, officials of both South and North 24-Parganas district said that the prioritised restoration work is being done by engaging people who get jobs under MGNREGA scheme. The state Panchayat and Rural Development minister Subrata Mukherjee said, "Our endeavour is to restore normalcy at the earliest. We are taking all steps needed for the same. But it will not take place in a day."
The state government has so far created more than 92.90 lakh man-days work in this fiscal and 5.59 lakh families have been brought under the scheme. So far, 47 per cent of the total number of people provided with jobs under 100 days work scheme were women in this fiscal.
