Karnataka Minister Orders Crackdown Over Employment Guarantee Wage Delays
Minister Eshwar B Khandre issues show-cause notices to hundreds of officials for delaying wages under the VB-G RAM G scheme in Karnataka.
In a stern move to address administrative negligence, Karnataka's Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister, Eshwar B Khandre, has ordered immediate disciplinary action against hundreds of officials. The crackdown follows significant delays in paying wages to workers under the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar & Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) scheme.
The Minister has directed that show-cause notices be issued to a massive group of officials, including 308 Panchayat Development Officers (PDOs), 74 Taluk Executive Officers (EOs), and 12 Deputy Secretaries. This decision comes after investigations revealed widespread failure to disburse payments to laborers in 311 Gram Panchayats across 12 different districts.
Negligence Defeating the Purpose of the Scheme
Minister Khandre expressed deep displeasure in a written instruction sent to the department Secretary and the Chief Executive Officers of 12 Zilla Panchayats. He highlighted that despite explicit guidelines stating that PDOs would be held accountable if wages were not paid within 15 days, many officials failed to comply.
The Minister noted a particularly concerning trend: unskilled workers were not receiving their wages even after funds had been officially released to the Gram Panchayats. This administrative bottleneck is having severe real-world consequences.
"Due to such negligence by officials, people are hesitant to come for VB-G RAM G works even during drought situations and are migrating," the Minister remarked, emphasizing that the delay is driving the very people the scheme aims to protect away from their homes.
District-Wise Breakdown of Wage Delays
The investigation identified specific clusters where the payment delays were most rampant. The 311 affected Gram Panchayats are spread across the following districts:
- Mysuru: 53 Gram Panchayats
- Belagavi: 52 Gram Panchayats
- Hassan: 47 Gram Panchayats
- Kodagu: 25 Gram Panchayats
- Bagalkot: 23 Gram Panchayats
- Udupi: 23 Gram Panchayats
- Vijayapura: 16 Gram Panchayats
- Dakshina Kannada: 15 Gram Panchayats
- Chikkamagaluru: 14 Gram Panchayats
- Shivamogga: 14 Gram Panchayats
- Chamarajanagar: 13 Gram Panchayats
- Mandya: 13 Gram Panchayats
Financial Burden on the State
The Minister also touched upon the fiscal challenges facing the state. He pointed out that the transition from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) to the VB-G RAM G scheme involved a change in the funding ratio from 90:10 to 60:40. This shift has placed an increased financial responsibility on the Karnataka government.
Despite this additional burden, the state implemented the scheme on July 1 with the specific goal of supporting the rural poor, landless labourers, and members of the SC/ST communities. The Minister warned that the fundamental objective of providing a safety net to prevent migration is being completely undermined by the inefficiency of the officials tasked with managing it.
Moving forward, the Minister has issued strict instructions to department leadership to ensure that such delays do not recur in any panchayat across the state.