Mumbai, March 25 (IANS) The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), in its report, has said that out of 25.72 lakh works approved during 2019-20 to 2023-24 in the state under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), only 52.81 per cent were completed.

The CAG report, which was presented in the state legislature on Wednesday, further stated that Rs 6,725.65 crore was spent on the completed works during the period, while Rs 5,361.02 crore was spent on incomplete works.

It said that out of the 25.72 lakh approved works, around 7.10 lakh had not even started by March 2025, of which 2.48 lakh works (35 per cent) had not been started for more than three years.

Of the 5.03 lakh (19.57 per cent) incomplete works, 1.07 lakh (21 per cent) had been pending completion for more than three years.

As per Para 14 of Schedule III of MGNREGS, work has to be provided within 15 days from the date of registration of demand for work or from the date on which work has been demanded in case of advance application, whichever is later.

In case work is not provided within the stipulated time, unemployment allowance should be paid to the registered households, the report said.

“Audit observed that out of an amount of Rs 34.85 lakh due as unemployment allowance during the period 2019-20 to 2023-24 in the state, only Rs 2,268 was paid and Rs 34.83 lakh remained unpaid,” it said.

The CAG observed that the social audit of the works undertaken was also deficient, with shortfalls ranging between 72.43 per cent and 95.67 per cent of gram panchayats during 2019-20 to 2023-24.

Out of Rs 11.22 crore to be recovered in 1,084 misappropriation cases pointed out by the Social Audit Unit during 2019-20 to 2023-24, recovery action in 314 cases amounting to Rs 4.44 crore was pending.

“In reply, the Director, Social Audit Unit (SAU), stated (June 2024) that the funds received from the Government of India for conducting social audit were less than one-third of the actual requirement for the year, due to which the social audits conducted were fewer than planned. Thus, not only were the funds from the Government of India insufficient to conduct social audits, but the funds transferred by the state government to the SAU were also inadequate. As a result, social audit — an institutionalised mechanism for continuous public vigilance to ensure accountability in the implementation of the scheme — suffered due to paucity of funds,” the report said.

The CAG report further stated that the Maharashtra State Employment Guarantee Council, constituted to monitor the implementation of the Act and the scheme, did not hold regular meetings.

“For quality monitoring of the works, a Director, State Quality Monitoring, was appointed at the state level; however, State Quality Monitors (SQMs) for each district were not appointed,” it added.

–IANS

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