Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that Rs 10,000 crore has been spent by the government in the last two months to create 14.62 crore man-days of work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) to help migrant workers. Sitharaman also said that 14.62 crore person-days of work were generated under MNREGS till May 13, 2020. The government is undertaking a drive to enroll returning migrants, Sitharaman added. There are plans to continue providing works under MNREGS in monsoon as well, she said. The States and Union Territories (UTs) are being advised to provide work to migrant workers as per provisions of the Act, she added.
The finance minister said the work has been offered to 2.33 crore wage seekers till May 13. About 40-50 per cent more persons have been enrolled as compared to May last year, she also said. On reforms in the pipeline, she said the government is for universal right to minimum wages and wants to remove regional disparity through a national floor wage.
Earlier,she said that 3 crore farmers with agricultural loans of Rs 4.22 lakh crore availed the benefit of 3-month loan moratorium. The finance minister's today's announcements are focussed on migrant workers, street vendors, small traders, small farmers.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced a slew of economic measures to support stressed Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). She announced Rs 3 lakh crore collateral-free automatic loans for businesses, including MSMEs, which will benefit small businesses.
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