Karnataka to launch rural job scheme cash transfer pilot
1 min read . Updated: 14 Feb 2013, 01:26 AM IST
Premium(Mint)
The project is part of the country’s ambitious cash-transfer plan for selected welfare programmes
Bangalore: Karnataka will start transferring cash directly to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries of India’s rural job guarantee scheme on a pilot basis in seven districts later this year, the state government said.
This is part of the country’s ambitious cash-transfer plan for selected welfare programmes that the central government wants to eventually adopt across the country to better utilize funds and plug leaks.
There have been complaints of funds being misappropriated in the rural jobs guarantee scheme that ensures 100 days of work in a year to every poor household in villages, according to K.S. Eswarappa, deputy chief minister of Karnataka who also oversees rural development.
“This (cash-transfer project) would help us reduce those complaints," Eswarappa said.
The welfare payments will be made through the e-Finance Management System (eFMS) developed by the National Informatics Centre.
The pilot project will be started in Bangalore (rural), Bagalkot, Dharwad, Bellary, Hassan, Tumkur and Mysore districts.
The eFMS, also being tried out in Rajasthan, Orissa and Gujarat, will ensure payment of wages and allow real-time monitoring of transactions.
