Shimla: Union Ministry of Rural Development has released Rs. 80.57 crore as Central fund under MGNREGA to Himachal Pradesh. The amount would be spent on material component and administrative assistance.

Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Virender Kanwar said that the state government is making concerted efforts to give pace to development of rural areas.

MGNREGA is an Indian labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the ‘right to work’. The act was first proposed in 1991 by P.V. Narasimha Rao and passed in September 2005 under the UPA government of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh.

Act aims to enhance livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.

MGNREGA has proved beneficial during this ongoing Coronavirus pandemic and ensuring livelihood for the people who had returned from the big city.