MGNREGS Job Cards: 35 Lakh Deleted And 38 Lakh Added This Fiscal

More than 35 lakh MGNREGS job cards were deleted in the current fiscal while over 38 lakh were issued, the government informed the Rajya Sabha on Friday.

Job cards cannot be deleted due to non-linkage with Aadhaar, Union Minister of State for Rural Development Kamlesh Paswan further said in his written response.

"Under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, Aadhar Payment Bridge System is only a mode of payment and job cards cannot be deleted due to reason of non-linking of Aadhaar with bank accounts," he added.

Paswan said updation and deletion of job cards was a regular exercise undertaken by states and Union territories.

"As of Dec. 16, 2024, a total number of 35.57 lakh job cards have been deleted in the current fiscal," he said.

The cards were deleted due to being fake or incorrect, duplicate, households not willing to work, family permanently shifting from gram panchayat and 'single person in job card and that person is expired', he said.

"Further, total number of 38.52 lakh new job cards have been issued year-to-date as of Dec. 16 in the current financial year,' the minister added.

If a beneficiary whose name is deleted from the NREGASoft database due to unwillingness to work or permanent shifting out of the gram panchayat later shows a willingness to work, state governments have been provided with an option to reactivate their job cards, Paswan said.

After successful reactivation, the beneficiary can demand and work again under the scheme, he added.

The programme officer, after independent verification of the facts, may direct the gram panchayat to cancel any particular job card. All additions, deletions and cancellations must be made public and presented to the gram sabha or the ward sabha and also reported to the programme officer and updated in the management information system, Paswan said.

"State governments and Union Territory administrations are regularly sensitised during various review meetings for deletion of job cards, if any, only after following due procedure," he added.

The scheme -- often called MGNREGA or NREGA -- aims to enhance livelihood security of rural households by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.