MAHATMA Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has been efficiently serving its purpose across State especially in the rural areas of Bijapur district. Through MGNREGS, 24-year- old Phoolmati’s fate changed and she is happier. MGNREGS has been changing the lives of people in many ways. Whether it is opening the way to economic prosperity by empowering the means of livelihood or providing a source of income by providing employment when there is no work in hand, MGNREGS is doing it all and making the lives easier for people on a large scale along with building community assets in villages. MGNREGS has also changed the life of a 24-year-old girl from Bijapur, Phoolmati in many ways. Phoolmati, a resident of Kodoli Panchayat, works as a mate and she allots work to the labourers under MGNREGS. She has been performing this duty for the last two years. In her childhood, Phoolmati lost her father and thus all responsibilities of her family came on her and her brother’s shoulders. Phoolmati, who has studied up to class 12th, was looking for employment near her house so that she can take care of her family as well. She also used to work as a labourer under MGNREGS.

 

Meanwhile, she got information about other job opportunities under MGNREGS through Gram Panchayat Secretary Rammurti. She was briefed about the work of a mate. Phoolmati then started her training in the year 2019 under the guidance of village employment assistant Kamaldai Nag. With her dedication, she became proficient in the work within a few days. In the special training organised for the mates in Bhairamgarh Janpad Panchayat, Phoolmati also got two weeks of training which increased her efficiency. After training, she is now able to manage the workers at the workplace very efficiently. She also got to know a lot about the creation of citizen information boards and job-card updation in the training. Phoolmati, who believes that MGNREGS changed her life, recalls that she had saved Rs 23,000 from her remuneration and used it for their house repairing work.

 

It needs to be mentioned here that in Kodoli, the women of the village are getting many benefits because of having females on the posts of employment assistant and the mate. Because of their friendly behavior, women’s participation in MGNREGS works has been more than 50 percent in the last three years. In the financial year 2019-20, 277 women worked for 7,658 man-days whereas in 2020-21, 329 women worked for 11684 man-days. In the current financial year till the month of September, 268 women have already got employment of 5,299 men-days.