Making Aadhaar-based payment system mandatory an assault on MGNREGA: CPI(M)

New Delh: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Tuesday said the Centre's decision to make Aadhaar-based payment system (ABPS) mandatory for MGNREGA payments is an 'assault' on the rural employment guarantee scheme. 

In a statement, the Polit Bureau of CPI(M) said the imposition of ABPS is the latest expression of the Modi government’s 'active hostility' towards the demand based rural work guarantee law — the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), adding that it is 'snatching away the right to crores of workers.'  

"Under the law, every rural worker has the right to a job card and every job card holder has the right to at least 100 days work. The first violation of the law by the central government is to divide job card holders into eligible and non-eligible for ABPS," the CPI(M) said.

"According to the government, of the 25.25 crore registered workers only 14.35 crores are eligible, because they have done at least one day’s work over the last three years. But suppose a job card holder decides that she does need to work on a MNREGA site, even though she has not done so earlier, now she cannot do so since she has been declared ineligible. In other words over 10 crore workers, who have every right to a job card under the law, have been declared ineligible to get ABPS and therefore denied their right to work on an MNREGA site," it said.

The CPI(M) added that even from the 14.35 crore 'so-called' eligible job card holders, as many as 12. 7 per cent, or around 1.8 crore workers, do not have ABPS and will therefore not be eligible to work in MNREGA. 

"Earlier the government had imposed an online registration system which, given the poor connectivity in large parts of rural India, resulted in workers' presence at the worksite not being accepted. They were and are being denied wages without online registration," the party said.

"This is an outright assault on the law. MNREGA, regardless of its inadequacies such as the limitation to 100 days, has proved to be a lifeline for the rural poor, particularly at this time of high rural distress caused by unemployment. The Modi government is using technology to attack a legal entitlement."

"The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly condemns this illegal attack on workers’ rights as guaranteed by MNREGA and demands the withdrawal of mandatory linkages to an AADHAR-based payment system," the CPI(M) said.

ABPS became mandatory for wage payment under flagship rural employment guarantee scheme MGNREGA from January 1. 

According to data provided by the Rural Development Ministry, there are around 14.32 crore active workers under the MGNREGA. 

The ministry said out of the total 14.32 crore active workers, Aadhaar seeding of 14.08 crore (98.31 per cent) active workers have already been completed.

Against these seeded Aadhaar, a total 13.76 crore Aadhaar cards have been authenticated and 87.52 per cent active workers are now eligible for ABPS.

The ministry on Monday said if certain gram panchayats have 'technical issues', the government may consider them for an exemption for mandatory payments through ABPS.