MGNREGS: Only 197 of 42L rural households got 100 person-days
Over 65% of rural households received under 14 days of work; only 197 households earned 100 person-days
Representative Image
CHENNAI: Over 27.79 lakh rural households in Tamil Nadu have received fewer than 14 days of work so far this financial year under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) Scheme, raising serious concerns over its implementation in the state.
So far, fewer than 200 households have reached that benchmark of 100 person-days, flagging the lack of intensity on the part of the implementing agency.
Since the beginning of the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj has generated 6.03 crore person-days, crossing the halfway mark of the total projected 12 crore person-days for the year. However, only 197 households have received the full quota of 100 person-days during this period, leaving 27.79 lakh households and 10.86 lakh households with 1-14 person-days and 15-30 person-days, respectively.
Of the 197 households, 41 are in Kallakurichi district, 36 in Tirupur, and 22 in Thanjavur. Conversely, there are seven districts -- Ariyalur, Coimbatore, Dharmapuri, Dindigul, Krishnagiri, Mayiladuthurai, and Tirunelveli -- where not a single household has reached the 100 person-days mark to date. An equal number of districts have recorded just one household each that has received 100 person-days of work.
This pattern reveals a lacklustre approach by the implementing agency in executing what is meant to be a demand-driven scheme aimed at providing employment to the poor and needy in rural Tamil Nadu, many of whom rely heavily on the programme.
In the previous financial year (2024-2025), the department provided 100 person-days of work to 1.18 lakh households, already a sharp decline from 3.97 lakh households in the year before.
“If this trend continues, the state will not even match last year’s figures,” said a source in the department.
“Officials are deviating from the core principle of the scheme and allocating jobs merely to match their projected figures, leaving workers without employment for weeks at a stretch,” said an official, preferring anonymity.
He added that, despite strong demand from the 88.68 lakh active MGNREGS workers, the authorities are failing to meet their needs and are weakening the social security objective of the scheme, which was introduced to support the rural poor.
FACT FILE
6,03,56,202: Total person-days generated till date as against projected person-days of 12 cr for the year.
42,39,290: Total households received work, but 91% of households received less than 30 days of work
27,79,720: Households that received work between 1 and 14 days
10,86,637: Households that received work between 15 and 30 days
197: Households that received 100 person-days
