Naidu Govt deletes 18.63 lakh MGNREGA job cards

Tadepalli, November 24: YSRCP leader and former minister Merugu Nagarjuna strongly condemned the Chandrababu Naidu-led coalition government for “cruelly snatching the livelihoods” of MGNREGA workers in Andhra Pradesh by deleting job cards on a massive scale. Addressing the media at the YSRCP central office in Tadepalli, he said the government has turned a welfare scheme meant to prevent migration and hunger into a weapon of political vendetta. Nagarjuna reminded that MGNREGA, first implemented in the country in 2006 in Anantapur under the leadership of Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, became a national model, providing livelihood security to lakhs of rural families.

He revealed that since April, 18.63 lakh job cards have been removed in Andhra Pradesh, while the nationwide total stands at 22 lakh, exposing the state government’s targeted assault on the poor. Shockingly, nearly 16 lakh job cards were deleted in just the last 40 days. He stated that soon after coming to power, the government removed existing MGNREGA field assistants and appointed politically aligned individuals who, under the guise of e-KYC, began eliminating the cards of YSRCP supporters and those not loyal to the ruling alliance. Calling it an “organized, vindictive operation,” Nagarjuna said deleting job cards to settle political scores is nothing short of attacking the stomachs of the poor.

Nagarjuna stated that SCs and STs are the worst affected, with nearly 36% of the deleted cards belonging to these vulnerable communities. From April to September alone, the state lost Rs. 435.40 crore worth of MGNREGA work, as person-days dropped from 17.95 crore last year to 15.51 crore this year, pushing thousands of families into distress. He said 48 lakh rural families, around 75 lakh people, depend on MGNREGA annually, with 90% of the funding coming from the Union Government, yet the state government is dismantling the scheme instead of ensuring work.

He slammed the coalition for destroying agriculture, denying labour opportunities, and now preventing even daily wage work through MGNREGA. Nagarjuna said Central guidelines clearly state that job cards cannot be cancelled without a Gram Sabha discussion, and cannot be removed for reasons like Aadhaar or bank-linkage issues or temporary absence. Even the Union Rural Development Ministry clarified in Parliament that such deletions violate rules, yet the AP government continues to ignore them.

Calling it an anti-poor, unconstitutional, and immoral act, Merugu Nagarjuna demanded that Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and Panchayat Raj and Rural Development Minister Pawan Kalyan immediately explain why job cards are being deleted, stop political misuse of the scheme, and restore all removed cards without delay. He said a government elected to protect citizens cannot starve them.