AHMEDABAD: A deepening wage crisis under MGNREGA in Gujarat has left workers unpaid for 5 to 6 months, triggering financial distress across rural regions and pushing unions to warn of a statewide agitation if dues are not cleared immediately.
What began as delayed payments has now spiralled into a full-blown crisis workers under the scheme in Gujarat.
From scattered complaints, the issue has now snowballed into a statewide flashpoint, with regions like Una and Girgadha in Saurashtra emerging as the worst-hit pockets.
Workers and employees engaged under the scheme claim they have not received wages for the past five to six months.
Raising the alarm, Rakesh Kumar, president of the All Gujarat MGNREGA Employees Union, said, “Despite working continuously, MGNREGA workers and employees across Gujarat have not been paid for 5/6 months. This is not a minor delay it reflects serious lapses in administrative functioning and fund management”.
“The financial burden on workers’ families has reached a breaking point. People are borrowing just to survive, and even basic needs are becoming difficult to meet especially in rural areas,” Kumar added, underscoring the human cost behind the data.
In villages across Saurashtra, daily wage earners are reportedly turning to loans, cutting down essentials, and struggling to keep households afloat. The longer the delay persists, the deeper the economic wounds grow. Sensing a tipping point, the union has now escalated its stance.
It has demanded immediate clearance of pending wages and called for a streamlined, accountable payment mechanism to prevent recurrence.
“If immediate steps are not taken, we will be left with no option but to launch a statewide agitation,” the union said.