Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 13: All Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference (AJKPC) has demanded an increase in the honorarium for the unskilled MGNREGA workers in Jammu and Kashmir.
In a statement, the AJKPC State President Anil Sharma said that the unskilled MGNREGA labourers in Jammu and Kashmir are being paid per day honorarium of Rs 227 while in other States the labourers are being paid between Rs 300 to 425.
Sharma said that the MGNREGA workers in Jammu and Kashmir rather deserve more than what is paid in other states since J&K is a by-and-large hilly UT and hence the quality of work demands more labour and efforts here.
He said that he has already raised the issue of MGNREGA honorarium with both Central and UT Government and is hopeful that a decision regarding the increase in the wages of the unskilled workers would be taken up soon.
“But in case it doesn’t happen, AJKPC wouldn’t hesitate to take to the roads and streets to press the Governments to do justice with the MGNREGA workers,” he said.
Meanwhile, Sharma, who’s putting up in Bandipora District as part of his block-wise tour of Kashmir Division, congratulated the elected Panchayat members of Kashmir Division for their sincere and selfless efforts in strengthening democracy at the grassroots level while serving the people with the limited resources provided by the Government.
The issue of conducting biometric attendance of MGNREGA labourers twice-a-day was also discussed in his Bandipora meeting with the Panchayat representatives.
He urged the Government to defer the decision until proper internet services are provided throughout J&K, including border and hilly areas.
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