Title - Works connected with Railways may be brought under rural jobs scheme

NEW DELHI :   The Rural Development Ministry may soon notify some works connected with the Railways such as afforestation and construction of approach road for crossings under its rural jobs scheme.Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh said his Ministry can agree with some of the suggestions made by Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal in this regard.Last week, Bansal had sought co-operation of the Rural Development Ministry informing that a number of Railway projects require unskilled labour force and many of these works can be undertaken in remote rural areas under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).A meeting of Rural Development Ministry officials chaired by Ramesh on Tuesday examined Bansal’s proposal and agreed with most of his suggestions.“Works such as construction of embankments, developing water ways, constructing pathways, clearing vegetation growth, afforestation and construction of approach roads for railway crossings can be included under the MGNREGA,” Ramesh said.He, however, said that no mechanical work such as maintenance of railway track could be included in the job scheme.In his communication to Ramesh, Bansal had said that deployment of rural population in schemes under MGNREGA is quite similar to the requirements of Railways for such specified works.He had suggested that area and project identification can be undertaken jointly at the level of district magistrates and Railway officers. Thereafter, programme officers concerned such as BDOs of the State Governments can deploy the rural labour force for these identified works under the supervision of Railway officials.“This arrangement would not only open up more options for the gainful employment of the rural population but also greatly help Railways expedite its ongoing projects,” Bansal said.