Chhatrapur: Chhatrapur block in Ganjam district has lagged behind other blocks in the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). The fact came to the fore during a recent public hearing on execution of National Food Security act (NFSA) and MGNREGS here. The hearing was attended by Chhatrapur sub-collector Prasana Kumar Patra and district social auditor Rabindranath Malan. The audit revealed that the administration had set a target to execute 814 projects under MGNREGS in the block between April 2021 and March 2022. Of them, only 226 projects have been completed while work on 588 projects is going on at different stages.
Furthermore, while 23,595 job cards have been distributed in 18 panchayats, only 16,270 cards have been made active, it was learnt. Under the rural job scheme, 10,70,855 workdays have been created during the period while 2,990 families have got 100 workdays, the audit said. However, among the 22 blocks in the district, Chhatrapur has not fared well in the execution of MGNREGS, said the sub-collector.
He added that government officials and sarpanchs are not ensuring right implementation of the employment scheme and there is lack of team effort. He observed that GRSs and junior engineers have to lay emphasis on execution of the MGNREGS projects in their respective panchayats. Besides, the officials reviewed execution of social security schemes like pension. The district social auditor said that pension is being credited into accounts of two people who have died in two panchayats. The officials concerned have been asked to identify the deceased beneficiaries.