The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005

The 
Mahatma Gandhi 
National Rural 
Employment Guarantee 
Act, 2005 
(42 of 2005) 
with 
Schedules 
as amended in 2017 
and 
• The National Rural Employment Guarantee (Central 
Council) Rules, 2006 
• The National Employment Guarantee Fund Rules, 2006 
• The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment 
Guarantee Audit of Schemes Rules, 2011 
• Notification regarding the wage rates payable to the 
Unskilled Workers in different States and Union TerritoriP~ 
THE MAHATMA GANDHI NATIONAL RURAL 
EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE ACT, 2005 
INTRODUCTION 
For rural development major focus of planning had been produ ctive 
absorption of m\der-employed and surp lus labour force of the rural sector. In 
order to provide direct supp lementary wage-employment to the rural poor 
through public works, many programmes were initiated by the Government of 
India , namely, National Rural Employment Programme, Rural Landless 
Employment Guarantee Programme and Jawahar . Rozgar Yojna. Currently, 
Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojna is being implemented all over the country. 
Though this Yojna is providing some relief to th e rural poor, its reach has been 
inadequate in view of the dimension of the tmemployment in rural areas . 
Therefore, an urgent need was felt to ensure at least some minimum days of 
employment in the shape of manu al labour to every household in the rural areas . 
Accordingly the Government resolved to enact a suitable A~ t which will provide 
legal guaran tee for at l east 100 days of employment every year at minimum 
wages for at least one able-bodied person in every rural poor household. To 
achieve this objective the Nation al Rural Employment Guarantee Bill was 
introd uced in the Parliament. 
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS AND REASONS 
Productive absorption of under-employed and surplus labour force in the 
rural sector has been a major focus of planning for rural development. In order 
to provide direct supplementary wage -employment to the rural poor throu gh 
public works, many programmes were initiated by the Government of India, 
namely, National Rural Employment Programme (NREP), Rural Landless 
Employment Guarantee Programme (RLEGP) and Jawahar Rozgar Yojana ORY). 
Currently, Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) is being implemented all 
over the country with the objective to provide supplementa ry wage employment 
in rural areas, create durable rural infrastructure and to ensure food security. 
Though the SGRY is providing some relief to the rural poor, its reach has been 
inadequate in view of the dimension of the unemployment in rural areas. It has 
been observed that the scale of employment generation under SGRY in 2002-03 
and 2003-04 was barely adeq uate to provide on an average 20 days of 
employment to each Below Poverty Line (BPL) household in the rural areas. 
Secondly, there is no guarantee that employment will be available to the rural 
household s on demand as SGRY is an allocation-based programme . The 
situation of unemployment has been compounded by the absence of any social 
security mechanism. There is, therefore, an urgent need to ensure at least some 
minimum days of employment in the shape of manual labour to every 
household in the rural areas. Recogrlizing the urgent need to ensure a certain 
minimum days of wage-emp loym ent, the United Progressive Alliance (UP A) 
Government has declared in its Nationa l Common Minimum Programme 
(NCMP). that it " ..... will immediately enact a Nationa l Employment Guarantee 
Act. This will provide a legal guarantee for at least 100 days of employment, to 
1 
2 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 
begin with, on asset-creating public works programmes every year at minimum 
wages for at least one able-bodied person in every rural, urban poor and lower 
middle class household." It is also necessary to empower the poor in the rural 
areas by appropriate enactment so that they can demand work on the strength 
of this legal entitlement. 
2. The proposed legislation constitutes a pioneering endeavour to secure 
wage employment for the poor households in the rural areas as a guaranteed 
entitlement on this scale. It takes into account the experience gained under the 
Employment Guarantee Scheme in Maharashtra. Considering that a programme 
of this kind is being contemplated on such a massive scale for the first time, it 
has to be necessarily implemented in phases . so as to eventually cover all the 
rural areas of the country, subject to the economic capacity of the Central and 
State Governments. 
3. In view of the above, it is proposed to enact a new legislation through the 
National Rural Employment Guarantee Bill, 2004. The salient features of the 
proposed legislation are the following: -
(i) ,The objective of the legislation is to enhance the livelihood security of 
the poor households in rural areas of the country by providing at 
least one hundred days of guaranteed wage employment to every 
poor household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled 
manual work. 
(ii) The State Government shall, in such rural areas in the State and for 
such period as may be notified by the Central Government, provide 
to every poor household guaranteed wage employment in unskilled 
manual work at least for a period of one hundred days in a financial 
year in accordance with the provisions made in the legislation. 
(iii) Every State Government shall, within six months from the date of 
commencement of this legislation, prepare a scheme to give effect to 
the guarantee proposed under the legislation. 
(iv) The one hundred days of employment under the legislation will be 
provided at the wage r~te to be specified by the Central Government 
for the purpose of this legislation. Until such time a wage rate is 
specified by the Central Government for an area, the minimum 
wage rate fixed by the State Government under the Minimum Wages 
Act, 1948 for agi:icultural labourers shall be considered as the vyage 
rate applicable to that area . 
(v) If an eligible applicant is not provided work as per the provisions of 
this legislation within the prescribed time limit, it will be obligatory 
on the part of the State Government to pay unemployment allowance 
at the prescribed rate. 
(vi) A Central Employment Guarantee Council at the Central level and 
State Employment Guarantee Councils at the State level in all States 
where the legislation is made applicable will be constituted for 
review, monitoring and effective implementation of the legislation in 
their respective areas. 
The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 3 
(vii) The Standing Committee of the District Panchayat, District 
Programme Coordinator, Programme Officers and Gram Panchayats 
have been assigned specific responsibiliti es in implementation of 
various provisions of the legislation at the Gram Panchaya ·t, Block 
and Distri ct levels. 
(viii) The Centra l Government shall establish a fund to be called 'Nationa l 
Employment Guarantee Fund' for the purposes of this legis lation. 
Similarly, the State Government s may constitute State Employment 
Guarantee Funds. 
(ix) Provisions for transparency and accoun tabili ty, audit, estab lishmen t 
of grievance and redressal mechanisms and penalty of non­
comp liance are also envisaged. 
(x) Provisions for Minimum features of Rural Employment Gua rantee 
Scheme and conditions for guaranteed Rural Employment under a 
scheme and minimum entitlements of labourers have been laid. 
4. The Notes on clauses explain in detail the various provisions conta ined in 
the Bill. 
5. The Bill seeks to achieve the above objects. 
ACT 42 OF 2005 
The National Rural Emp loyment Guarantee Bill having been pass ed by both 
the Houses of Parliament received the assent of the President on 5th Sep temb er, 
2005. It came on the Statute Book as The Natio nal Rural Employment Guarantee 
Act, 2005 (42 of 2005). By section 2 of the National Rural Employment Guarantee 
(Amendment) Act, 2009 (46 of 2009) nomenclature of the Act has been 
substituted with retrospective effect from 2nd October, 2009. Now it stands as 
THE MAHATMA GANDHI NATIONAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT GURANTEE 
ACT, 2009 (42 of 2009) (Came into force on 1-4-2007 in different areas in the different 
states). 
AMENDING ACT 
1. The . National Rural Emp loym ent Guarantee (Extension to Jammu and 
Kashmir) Act, 2007 (23 of 2007). 
2. The National Rural Employment Guarantee (Amendment) Act, 2009 
(46 of 2009) (w.r.e.f. 2-10-2009). 
THE MAHATMA GANDHI NATIONAL RURAL 
EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE ACT, 2005 
(42 of 2005) 
[5th September, 2005] 
An Act to provide for the enhancement of livelihood security of the households in 
rural areas of the country by providing at least one hundred days of guaranteed wage 
employment in every financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer 
to do unskilled manual work and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto . 
. BE it enacted by Parliament in the Fifty-sixth Year of the Republic of Indi a as 
follows:-
CHA PTER I 
PRELIMINARY 
1. Short title, extent and commencement. - (1) This Act may be called 1[the 
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employm ent Guarantee Act], 2005. 
(2) It exten ds to the whole of India 2[***]. 
(3) It shall come into force on such date 3 as the Central Government may, by 
notification in the Official Gazette, appoint; and different dates m ay be 
appointed for different States or for different areas in a State and any refere nce 
in any such provision to the commencement of this Act shall be constru ed as a 
reference to the coming into force of that provision in such State or, as the case 
may be, in such area: 
Provided that this Act shall be a pplicabl e to the whole of the territ ory to 
which it extends within a period of five years from the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
l. Subs. by Act 46 of 2009, sec. 2, for "the National Rural Employment Guaran tee -!\ct" (w.r.e.f. 
2-10-2009). 
2. The words "except the State of Jammu and Kashmir " omitted b y Act 23 of 2007, sec. 2(2). 
3. Came into force on 1-4-2007, vide S.0. 453(E), dated 26th March, 2007, in different areas in the 
States as spec ified in the Schedul e given b elow: 
SCHEDULE 
State Areas in the State (Districts) State 
(1) (2) 
Andhra Pradesh Nellore 
East Godavari 
Srikaku lam 
Kurn ool 
Prakasam 
Guntur 
Aruna chal Pradesh Chan glang 
Lohi t 
Assam Marigaon 
Dar rang 
Nalbar i 
Barpeta 
Hailakand i 
Cachar 
(1) 
Bihar 
4 
Areas in the State (Districts) 
(2) 
Sheikhpura 
Si wan 
Khagaria 
Mad hepu ra 
Saharsa 
Sitamarhi 
West Champa ran 
Banka 
Bhagalpur 
East Champa ran 
Begusarai 
Gopa lganj 
Buxar 
Saran 
Arwal 
Contd. 011 next page 
Sec. 1) The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 
COMMENT S 
5 
This section gives the short title of the Act and the area to which it extends . Sub­
section (3) provides that the proposed legislation sha ll come into force on such date as the 
Contd. from previous page 
(1) 
Chhatti sgarh 
Guja rat 
Haryana 
Hima chal Prad£sh 
Jharkhand 
Karnataka 
Kera la 
Madh ya Pradesh 
Man ipu r 
Meghalaya 
(2) 
Korba 
Janjigir-Champa 
Mahasamtmd 
Raipur 
Valsad 
Bharuch 
Navsari 
Ambala 
Mewat 
Kang ra 
Mandi 
Singhbhum East 
Deoghar 
Bellary 
Hassan 
Chikmaga lur 
Belgaum 
Shimoga 
Kodagu 
Jdukk i 
Kasargod 
Chhindwara 
Harda 
Parma 
Katni 
Dew as 
Guna 
Rew a 
Datia 
Damoh 
Rajgarh 
Anupp ur 
Ashok !'!agar 
Burahanpur 
Chandel 
Churachandpur 
East Khasi Hills 
Jain tia Hills 
Ri Bhoi 
(1) 
Mizoram 
Naga land 
Orissa 
Punjab 
Rajas than 
Sikkim 
Trip ura 
Tamil Nadu 
Uttarakhand 
West Bengal 
(2) 
Champh ai 
Ltmglei 
Kohima 
Mokokchung 
Tuensang 
Wokha 
Bargarh 
Anugul 
Balasore 
Bhadrak 
Jaipur 
Nawa nshahr 
Jalandhar 
Amritsar 
Tonk 
Swai Madhopur 
Chittorgarh 
Barmer 
Jalor 
Jaisalmer 
East Sikkim 
South Sikkim 
Sou th Tripura 
West Tripura 
Thanjavur 
Thiruvaru r 
Triunelveli 
Kant r 
Udham Singh Nagar 
Ha rid war 
Cooch Behar 
Nad ia 
Barddhaman 
Medinapur (East) 
North 24 Parganas 
Hooghly 
Darjeeling 
Came into force on 15-5-2007, vide S.O. 764(E), dated 15th May, 2007, in different areas in Uttar 
Prades h as specified in the Sched ule given below: 
State 
(1) 
Uttar Pradesh 
SCHEDULE 
Areas in the State (Districts) State 
(2) 
Jhansi 
Kanpur Dehat 
Mau 
Sultanpur 
Ambed kar Nagar 
Bas ti 
Sant Kabir Naga r 
Maharajganj 
(1) 
Areas in the State (Districts) 
(2) 
Siddharthnagar 
Bahraich 
Balrampur 
Shrawasti 
Gonda 
Ba Ilia 
Budaun 
Etah 
Farrukhabad 
Contd. on 11ext page 
6 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 [Sec. 1 
Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gaze tte, appoint ; and different 
date s may be appoin ted for different States or for different areas in a State and any 
reference in any such provision to the commencemen t of the propo sed legislation shall be 
construed as a reference to the comfog into force of that provision in such State or, as the 
case may be, in such area. [Notes 011 Cln11ses} 
Contd. from previous page 
Came into force on 6-6-2007, vide S.O. 943(E), dated 4th June, 2007, in differen t areas in the 
State of Jammu and Kashmir as specified in the Schedul e given below: 
State 
(1) 
Jammu & Kashmir 
SCHEDULE 
Area s in the State (Di stricts) Stat e 
Doda 
Kupwara 
(2) (1) 
Areas in the State (Districts) 
Poonc h 
Anan tnag 
Jammu 
(2) 
Came into force on 1-4-2008, vide S.O. 1684(E), dated 28th Septe mber, 2007, in different areas 
in the States and the Union territor ies as specified in the Schedule given below: 
SCHEDULE 
States Areas in the States (Districts) Stat es Areas in the States !Ois tricts) 
(1) (2) (1) (2) 
Andlua Prad esh 1. West Godavari 8. Kachchh 
2. Krislrna 9. Gandhinagar 
3. Visa khapatnam 10. Bhavnaga r 
Arunacha l Prades h 1. Upper Siang 11. Jamnagar 
2. West K a meng 12. Vadodara 
3. Lower Suban siri 13. Porb a ndar 
4. Tirap 14. Rajkot \ 
5. Diba ng Valley (Upper) 15. Surat 
6. West Siang 16. Ahmedabad . 
7. Tawang Haryana 1. Fatehabad \ 
8. East Siang 2. Rewari 
9. East Kameng 3. Bhiwani 
10. Papum Pare 4. Kaithal 
11. Lower Dibang Valley 5. Jind 
12. Kurun g-KLLmey 6. Jhajjar 
Assam 1. Karim ganj 7. Gurgaon 
2. Golag hat 8. Sonepat 
3. Sibsagar 9. Hisar 
4. Sonitpur 10. Kuruk she tra 
5. Dhubri 11. Kama l 
6. Nagaon 12. Roh tak 
7. Jorha t 13. Yamun anagar ' 
8. Dibru garh 14. Panipat 
9. Tinsuk ia 15. Panchku la 
10. Kamru p 16. Farid abad 
11. Kamrup (Me tro) Himachal Prad esh 1. Kilrnaur 
12. Bask a 2. Lahaul & Spiti 
13. Uda lgur i 3. Bilaspur 
14. Chi rang 4. Hamirpur 
Chhattisgarh 1. Durg 5. Kullu 
Gujarat 1. Kheda 6. Una 
2. Pa tan 7. Sola n 
3. Mahcsa na 8. Shimla 
4. Am re Ii Janum1 & Kashmir 1. Rajauri 
5. Surendranaga r 2. Kargil 
6. Anand 3. Pulw ama 
7. Junagad h 4. Badgam 
Contd. 011 11ext page 
Sec. 2] The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 7 
2. Defi nitions .- In this Act, unless the context otherwise r equires,-
(a) "adult" means a person who has completed h is e ighteenth year of 
age; 
Contd. from previous page 
(1) (2) (1) (2) 
5. Kathua 9. Jalgaon 
6. Udham pur 10. Kolhap ur 
7. Baramul a 11. Parbhan i 
8. Leh Ladakh 12. Solapur 
9. Srinagar 13. Nashik 
Karnata ka 1. Cha ma rajanaga r 14. Pune 
2. Mand ya 15. Nagp ur 
3. Kop pa! Manip ur 1. Sena pati (Excluding 3 
4. Udupi Sub-Divisions) 
5. Tumkur 2. Ukhru l 
6. Haveri 3. Impha l East 
7. Banga lore Rural 4. Bishn upur 
8. Bijapur ·5. Thouba l 
9. K olar 6. Imphal West 
10. Uttara Kannada Megha laya 1. Wes t Khasi Hills 
11. Bagalkot 2. East Garo Hills 
12. Gadag Mizoram 1. Mam it 
13. Myso re 2. Serchhip 
14. Dakshina Kannada 3. Kolasib 
15. Dharwad 4. Aizawl 
16. Bangalore Nagala nd 1. Phck 
Kera la 1. Malappuram 2. Ztmheboto 
2. Pathanam thitta 3. Dimapur 
3. Kottayam 4. Kiphi rc 
4. Kollam 5. Longleg 
5. Th rissur 6. Paren 
6. Alapp uzha Orissa 1. Nayagar h 
7. Thi ruva nanthapuram 2. Kend ra para 
8. Kozhikode 3. Jagatsing ha pur 
9. Ernaku lam 4. Puri 
10. ·Kann ur 5. Cuttack 
Madh ya Prade sh 1. Narsimhapur 6. Khordha 
2. Sehore Punjab 1. Moga 
3. Raisen 2. Mansa 
4. Shajapur 3. Gurdasp ur 
5. Mandsaur 4. Muktsar 
6. Vidis ha 5. Firozp ur 
7. Morena 6. Fatehgar h Sahib 
8. Bhind 7. Sangrur 
9. Neemuc h 8. Bathinda 
10. Saga r 9. Roopnagar 
11. Ratlam 10. Kapurthala 
12. Hoshangabad 11. ·Patia la 
13. Ujjain 12. Farid kot 
14. Jaba lpur 13. Ludhiana 
15. Gwa lior Rajasthan 1. Dausa 
16. Indore 2. Rajsamand 
17. B hopa l 3. Al war 
Maharashtra 1. Sind hud urg 4. Baran 
2. Ra tnagiri 5. Nagaur 
3. Satara 6. Dhau lpur 
4. Bid 7. Bundi 
5. Jalna 8. Bharatpur 
6. Latur 9. Hanumangarh 
7. Raiga rh 10. Bhilwara 
8. Sangli 11. )hunjhunu 
Contd. on next page 
8 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 [Sec. 2 
(b) "appli cant" means the head of a household or any of its o ther adult 
memb ers who has applied for emplo yme nt under the Scheme; 
(c) "Block" means a community developm ent area within a district 
compri sing a group of Gram Pancha yats; 
Contd. from previous page 
• 
(1) 
Sikki m 
Tamil Nadu 
Tripur a 
Uttar Pradesh 
(2) 
12. Sikar 
13. Pali 
14. Ganganagar 
15. Chum 
16. Jodhpur 
17. Bikaner 
18. Ajmer 
19. Jaipur 
20. Kota 
1. West Sikkim 
1. A,riyalur 
2. Dharmapuri 
3. Peramba lur 
4. Pudukkott ai 
5. Ra manathapuram 
6. Nam akka l 
7. Vello re 
8. Thoo thukkudi (Tuticori n) 
9. Virudhun aga r 
10. Salem 
11. Erode 
12. Tiru chirapp a lli 
13. Kanc hecp uram 
14. Theni 
15. Thiruvallur 
16. Madurai 
17. The Nilgiris 
18. Kanniya kum ari 
19. Coimbat ore 
20. Krishnagiri 
l. Nor th Tripura 
1. Ghazipur 
2. Deoria 
3. San t Ravidas Nagar 
(Bhadohi) 
4. Faiza bad 
5. Aurai ya 
6. Mainp uri 
7. Kann auj 
8. Pilibhit 
9. Baghpat 
10. Hathras 
(1) 
Uttaranchal 
West Benga l 
Goa 
Union Territories 
A&N Isla nd 
D & N Haveli 
Daman & Diu 
Lakshadweep 
Pudu cherry 
Chand igarh 
(2) 
11. Shahjahanpur 
12. Etawa h 
13. Bulandshahr 
14. Bijnore 
15. Allahabad 
16. Jyotiba Phulc Naga r 
17. Rampur 
18. Muzaffamag ar 
19. Saharanp ur 
20. Mathura 
21. Ali~<1rh 
22. Firozabad 
23. Moradabad 
24. Bareilly . 
25. Gautam Budd ha Nagar 
26. Varanasi 
27. Agra 
28. Meeru t 
29. Ghaziabad 
30. Lucknow 
31. Kanpur Nagar 
1. Rud raprayag 
2. Bageshwar 
3. Uttarkashi 
4. Almora 
5. Garhwa l 
6. Pithoragarh 
7. Na inital 
8. Dehradun 
1. Howrah 
t . North Goa 
2. South Goa 
1. Andamans 
2. Nicobars 
1. D & N Haveli 
1. Daman 
2. Diu 
1. Lakshadwecp 
1. Puducherry 
1. Chandiga rh 
Came into force on 1-4-2008, vide G.S.R. 3(E), dated 31st December, 2007, in different areas in 
the S tates and the Union territory as specified in the Schedule given below: 
States 
(1) 
Karnataka 
Punja b 
SCHEDULE 
Areas in the States (Di strict s) 
(2) 
1. Ramanagara 
2. Chikkaballapura 
1. SAS Nagar 
2. Taran Taran 
3. Barna la 
Union Territ ory Areas in the Union Territory (Di stricts) 
(1) (2) 
Andam a n and 
Nicoba r I slands t . South Andama11 
2. North and Middl e 
Andaman 
Contd. on next page 
Sec. 2] The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 9 
(d) "Central Council" means the Central Employmen t Guarante e 
Council cons titut ed under sub-section (1) of section 10; 
(e) "District Progra mme Coordinator" means an officer of the State 
Governmen t d esignated as such under sub-section (1) of section 14 
for implementati on of the Scheme in a d istric t; 
(f) "household" mean s the members of a family related to each other by 
blood, marriage or adop tion and normally residing together and 
sharing meals or holding a common rat~on card; 
(g) "implem enting agency" includ es any depa rtment of the C _entral 
Governme nt or a State Government, a Zila Parishad, Panchayat at 
intermediate level, Gram Panchayat or any local authority · or 
Governme nt undertak ing or non-governmental organisation 
autho rized by the Centra l Gover nment or the State Government to 
undertake the impl ementation of any work taken up under a Scheme; 
(h) "minim um wage", in relation to any area, means the minimum wage 
fixed by the State Gove rnment under section 3 o f the Minimum 
Wages Act, 1948 (11 of 1948) for agricultural labourers as applica ble 
in that area; 
(i) "National Fund " means the National Employm ent Guarant ee Fund 
established under sub-section (1) of section 20; 
(j) "notification" means a notifi cation publi shed in the Official Gaze tte; 
(k) "preferred work" means any work which is taken up for 
implem entation on a priority basis under a Scheme; 
(1) "presc ribed" means prescribed by rules made under this Act; 
(m) "Programme Officer" means an officer appo inted under sub-section 
(1) of section 15 for implem enting the Scheme; 
(n) "project" means any work taken up under a Scheme for the purpose 
of providing emplo yment to the a ppli cants; 
Contd. from previous page 
Came in to force on 1-4-2008, vide G.S.R. 93(E), da ted 11th February , 2008, in the different area s 
in the States/Union territori es as indicated in the Schedu le given below: 
SCHEDULE 
States Areas in the States (Districts) States Areas in the States (Districts) 
(1) (2) (1) (2) 
Gujarat 1. Tapi Arunachal Prades h 1. Anjaw 
Came into force on 1-4-2008, vide S.O. 818(E), dated 4th Apr il, 2008, in the different areas in 
the States/Union territori es as indicat ed in the Sched ule given below: 
SCHEDULE 
States Areas in the States (Districts) 
(1) (2) 
Rajasthan Pratapgarh 
1 O The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 [Sec. 2 
(o) "rural area" mean s any area in a State except those areas covere d by 
any urban local body or a Cantonment Board established or 
constituted under any law for the time being in force; 
(p) "Scheme" means a Scheme notified by the State Government under 
sub-section (1) of section 4; 
(q) "Sta te Council " means the State Employment Guara ntee Counci l 
constituted under sub-s ection (1) of section 12; 
(r) "unskilled manual work" means any physical work which any adult 
person is capable of doing without any skill or special trainin g; 
(s) "wage rate" mean s the wage rate referred to in section 6. 
CHAPTER II 
GUARANTEE OF EMPLOYMENT IN RURAL AREAS 
3. Guaran tee of rural employment to households. -(1) Save as otherwise 
provided , the State Government shall, in such rural area in the State as may be 
notified by the Central Government, provide to every household whose adult 
members voluntee r to do unskilled manual work not less than one hundred days 
of such work in a financi al year in accorda nce with the Scheme made under this 
Act. 
(2) Every person who has done the work given to him under the Scheme 
shall be e ntitled to receive wages at the wage rate for each day of work. 
(3) Save as otherwise provided in this Act, the disbursement of daily wages 
shall be made on a weekly basis or in any case not later than a fortnight after the 
date on which such work was done. 
(4) The Central Government or the State Government may, within the limits 
of its economic capacity and development, make provision s for securing ~ork to 
every adult member of a household under a Scheme for any period beyond the 
period guaranteed under sub-section (1), as may be expedient. 
COMMENTS 
This section provides the guaran tee of employment to poor rural hous eholds. The 
State Government shall provide to every poor hot1sehold whose adult member s volunteer 
to do unskilled manual wqrk not less than one hundr ed days of such work in a financial 
year. It further provides that every person who has done the work given to him und er 
the Scheme shall be entitled to receive wages at the wage rate for each day of work on 
a weekly basis or in any case not later than a forhught after the date on whlch such work . 
was done . [Notes on Clauses] 
CHAPTER III 
EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEMES AND 
UNEMPLOYMENT ALLOWANCE 
4. Employment Guarantee Schemes for rural areas;-(1) For the purpo ses of 
rf.ving effect to the provisions of section 3, every State Government sha ll, within 
[one year ] from the date of commencement of this Act, by notification, make a 
Scheme, for providing not less than one hundred days of guaranteed 
employm ent in a financial year to every household in the rural areas covered 
1. Subs. by S.0. 14(E), dated 4-1-2006, for "six month s". 
Sec. 6) The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 11 
m1der the Scheme and whose adult members, by app lication, volunteer to do 
unskilled manual work subject to the cond itions laid down by or under this Act 
and in the Scheme: · 
Provided that until any such Scheme is notified by the State Government, the 
Annual Action Plan or Persp ective Plan for the Sampoorna Grmneen Rozgnr Yojana 
(SGRY) or the National Food for Work Programme (NFFWP) whichever is in 
force in the concerned area immediately before such notification sha ll be deemed 
to be the action plan for the Scheme for the purposes of this Act. 
(2) The State Government shall publish a summary of the Scheme made by 
it in at least two local newspa pers, one of which sha ll be in a vernacu lar 
langu age circulating in the area or areas to whic h such Scheme shall apply. 
(3) The Scheme made under sub-section (1) shall provide for the minimum 
features specified in Sched ule I. 
COMMENTS 
This section provides that for the purposes of giving effect to the provis ions of 
section 3, every State Governm ent shall, by notification, make a Scheme, for providing not 
less than one hundred days of guaranteed employment in a financial year to every 
household in the rural areas covered und er the Scheme and whose adult members, by 
application, volun teer to do unskilled manual work. [Notes on Clauses] 
5. Conditions for providing guaranteed employment. -(1) The State 
Government may, without prejudice to the conditions speci fied in Schedule II, 
specify in the Scheme the cond itions for providing guarant eed employment 
under this Act. 
(2) The persons employed under any Scheme made under this Act shall be 
entitled to such facilities not less than the minimum facilities specified in 
Schedule II. 
COMMENTS 
This section provides that the State Government may, without prejudice to the 
cond itions specified in Schedule II, specify in the Scheme the cond itions for providing 
guaranteed employm ent. The persons employed w1der any Scheme made und er the Act 
sha ll be entitled to such facilities not less than the minimum facilities specified in 
Schedule II. [Notes on Clauses] 
6. Wage rate.-(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Minimum 
Wages Act, 1948 (11 of 1948), the Centra l Governmen t may, by notification, 
specify the wage rate for the purposes of this Act: 
Provided that different rates of wages may be specified for different areas: 
Provided furth er that the wage rate s pecified from time to time under any 
such notification shall not be at a rate less than sixty rupees per day. 
(2) Until such time as a wage rate is fixed by the Central Government in 
respect of any area in a State, the minimum wage fixed by the State Government 
under section 3 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (11 of 1948) for agricultural 
labour ers, shall be considered as the wage rate applicable to that area . 
COMMENTS 
This section defines the wage ra te and also provides that notwithstanding anything 
contained in the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, the Central Government, may, by 
12 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 [Sec. 6 
notification, specify the wage rate for the purposes of the Act, which may be different for 
different areas. Until such time as a wage rate is fixed by the Central . Goverrunent in 
respect of any area in a State, the minimum wage fixed by the State Government under 
section 3 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 for agricultura l labourers shall be considered 
as the wage rate applicable to that area. [Notes on Clauses] 
7. Payment of unemployment allowance.-(1) If an applicant for 
employment under the Scheme is not provided such employment within fifteen 
days of receipt of his application seeking employment or from the date on which 
the employmen t has been sought in the case of an advance application, 
whichever is later, he shall be enti tled to a daily tmemployment allowance in 
accordance with this section. 
(2) Subject to such terms and conditions of eligibility as may be prescribed 
by the State Government and subject to the provisions of this Act and the 
Schemes and the economic capacity of the State Government, the tmemployment 
allowance payab le under sub-section (1) shall be paid to the applicants of a 
household subject to the entitlement of the household at such rate as may be 
specified by the State Government, by notification, in consultation with the State 
Council : 
Provided that no such rate shall be less than one-fourth of the wage rate for 
the first thirty days during the financial year and not less than one-half of the 
wage rate for the remaining period of the financial year . 
(3) The liability of the State Government to pay unemployment allowance to 
a household during any financial year shall cease as soon as-
(a) the applicant is directed by the Gram Panchayat or the Programme 
Officer to report for work either \by himself or depute at least one 
adult member of his household; or . 
(b) the period for which employment is sought comes to an end and no 
member of the household of the applicant had turned up for 
employment; or 
(c) the adult members of the household of the applican t have received in 
total at least one hundred days of work within the financial year; or 
(d) the household of the applicant has earned as much from the wages 
and tmemployment allowance taken together which is equa l to the 
wages for one hundre<! days of work during the financial year. 
(4) The unemployment allowance payable to the household of an applicant 
jointly shall be sanctioned and disbursed by the Programme Officer or such local 
authority (including the Panchayats at the district, intermediate or village level) 
as the State Government may, by notification, authorise in this beha lf. 
(5) Every payment of unemployment allowance under sub-section (1) shall 
be made or offered not later than fifteen days from the date on which it became 
due for payment. 
(6) The State Government may prescribe · the procedure for payment of 
unemployment allowance uhder this Act. 
COMMENTS 
This section lays down the terms and conditions for payment of unemployment 
allowance. If an applicant for employment under the Scheme is not prov ided employmen t 
Sec. 1 OJ The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 13 
as per the provisions of the Act within fifteen days of receipt of his application seeking 
employment or from the date on which the employment has been sought in the case of 
an advance application, whichever is later, he shall be entitled to a daily unemployment 
allowance in accordance with this section. The unemploymen t allowance payable shall be 
paid to the app licants of a household subject to the entitlement of the household provided 
that no such rate shall be less than one-fourth of the wage rate for the first thirty days 
during the relevant financial year and not less than one-half of the wage rate for the 
rema ining period of the financial year. [Notes on Clauses] 
· 8. Non-disbursement of unemployment allowance in certain 
circumstances. -(1) If the Programme Officer is not in a position to disburse the 
unemployment allowan ce in time or at all for any reason beyond his control, he 
shall report the matter to the District Programme Coordinator and announce 
such reasons in a notice to be displayed on his noti •e board and the notic e board 
of the Gram Panchayat and such other conspicuous places as he may deem 
necessary. 
(2) Every case of non-payment . or delayed payment of unemployment 
allowance shall be reported in the ann ual report submitted by the District 
Programme Coordinator to the State Government alongwith the reasons for such 
non-payment or delayed payment. 
(3) The State Government shall take all measures to make the payme nt of 
unemployment allowan ce reported under sub-section (1) to the concerned 
~10usehold as expeditious ly as possible. 
9. Disentitlement to receive unemployment allowance in - certain 
circumstances. -An applicant who-
(a) does not accept the employment provided to his household under a 
Scheme; or 
(b) does not report for work within fifteen days of being notified by the 
Programme Officer .or the implementing agency to report for the 
work; or 
(c) continuously remains absent from work, without obtaining a 
permission from the concerned implem enting agency for a period of 
more than one week or remains absent for a total period of more than 
one week in any month, 
shall not be eligible to claim the unemp loyment allowance payable under this 
Act for a period of three months but shall be eligible to seek employment under 
the Scheme at any time. 
CHAPTER IV 
IMPLEMENTING AND MONITORING AUTHORITIES 
10. Centra l Employment Guarantee Council.-(1) With effect from such 
date as the Centra l Government may, by notification specify, there shall be 
constituted a Council to be called the Centra l Employment Guaran tee Council to 
discharge the functions, and perform the duties, assigned to it by or under this 
Act. 
(2) The headquarters of the Central Council shall be at Delhi. 
14 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 [Sec. 1 O 
(3) The Central Council shall consist of the following memb ers to be 
appointed by the Central Government , namely:-
(a) a Chairperson; 
(b) not more than such numb er of represe ntativ es of the Central 
Ministrie s includin g the Plannin g Commission not below the rank of 
Joint Secretary to the Government of Indi a as may be determin ed b y 
the Central Gove rrunent; 
(c) not more than such numb er of representatives of the State 
Governments as may be determined b y the Central Gove rnment; 
(d) not more than fifteen non-official m embers represen ting Panchayati 
Raj Instituti ons, organisations of workers and disadvan taged gro ups: 
Provided that such non-official members shall includ e two 
chairp ersons of District Panchayats nominated by the Central 
Gove rnm ent by rotation for a period of one year at a time: 
Provided furth er that not less than one-third of the non-official 
member s nominat ed under this claus e s hall be women: 
Provided also that not less than one-third of the non-official 
members s hall be belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled 
Tribes, the other Backward Classes and Minoriti es; 
(e) such num ber of representatives of the States as the Central 
Gove rnment may, by rules, determine in this behalf; 
(f) a Memb er-Secretary not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the 
Government of Indi a. 
(4) The terms and conditi ons subject to which the Chairperson and other 
members of the Central Council may be appointed and the time, place and 
procedure of the meetings (including the quorum at such meetings) of the 
Central Counci l shall be s uch as may be prescribed by the Central Government. 
11. Functions and duties of Central Council. - (1) The Central Council shall 
perform and discharge the following functions and duties, namely:-
(a) establish a central evaluation and monitoring system; 
(b) advise the Central Governm ent on all matt ers concernin g the 
implementation of this Act; 
(c) review the monitorin g a1:i.d redressal m echanism from time to time 
and recomme nd improvements required ; 
(d) promote the widest possible disseminati on of inform ation about the 
Scheme s made under this Act; 
(e) monitorin g the impl ementation of this Act; 
(f) preparation of annua l report s to be laid before Parliam ent by the 
Central Gove rnment on the implementation of this Act; 
(g) any other duty or function as may be assigned to it by the Central 
Gove rnment. 
(2) The Central Council shall have the powe r t o undertak e evaluation of the 
various Schemes made under this Act and for that purpose collect or cause to be 
Sec. 12] The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 15 
collected statistics pertaining to the rura l economy and the implementation of the 
Schemes. 
· 12. State Employment Guarantee Council. -(1) For the purposes of regular 
monit oring and reviewing the imp lementation of this Act at the State level, every 
State Gove rnment shall constitute a S tate Council to be known as the ............. . 
(name of the State) State E mploymen t Guarantee Counci l with a Chairperson 
and such number of official members as may be determined by the State 
Govern ment and not more than fifteen non-official members nominated by the 
State Government from Panchayati Raj instituti ons, organizations of workers 
and disadvantaged groups: 
Provided that not less than one-third of the non-official members nominated 
under this clause shall be wome n: 
Provided furth er that not less than one third of the non-official members 
shall be belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, the Other 
Backward Classes and Minoriti es. 
(2) The terms and conditions subject to whic h the Chairperson and members 
of the State Cou ncil may be appo inted and the time, place and procedure of the 
meet ings (including the quorum at such meeting s) of the State Council shall be 
such as may be prescribed by the State Gove rnment. 
(3) The duti es and functions of the S tate Council shall include-
(a) advising the State Govern ment on all matters concernin g the Scheme 
and its implementation in the State; 
(b) determining the preferred works; 
(c) reviewing the monit oring and redressal mechani sms from time to 
time a nd recommending improvements; 
(d) promoting the w idest possible dissemination of inform ation about 
this Act and the Schemes- under it; 
(e) monitoring the impl ementation of this Act and the Schemes in the 
State and coordinating such implem en tation with the Central 
Council; 
(f) prep aring the ann ual rep ort to be laid before the State Legislature by 
the State Gove rnment; 
(g) any other duty or function as may be assigned to it by the Central 
Council or the State Government. 
(3) The State Counc il shall have the power to und ertak e an evaluation of the 
Schemes opera ting in the S tate a nd for that purpose to collect or cause to be 
collected statistics pertaining to the rura l economy and the impl ementati on of the 
Schemes and Programmes in the S tate. 
COMMENTS 
This section prov ides that the State Government shall, by notification, constitute a 
State E mployment Guarantee Council for the purposes of regular monitoring and 
reviewing the implementation of the Act at the State l<;vel. It furth er provides for the 
composition of the State Council. [Notes on Clauses] 
16 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 [Sec. 13 
13. Principa l authorities for planning and implementation of Schemes .­
(1) The Panchayats at district, intermediate a nd village levels s hall be the 
principal authorities for planning and implementation of the Schemes made 
under this Act. 
(2) The function s of the Panchayats at the district level shall be-
(a) t~ finalise and approve blockwise shelf of projects to be taken up 
under a programme under the Scheme; 
(b) to supervise and monitor the projects taken up at the Block level and 
district level; and 
(c) to carry out such other functions as may be assigned to it by the State 
Council, from time to time. 
(3) The functions of the Panchayat at intermediate leve l shall be-
(a) to approve the Block l evel Plan for forwarding it to the district 
Panchaya t at the district level for final approval; 
(b) to s upervise and monitor the projects taken up at the Gram 
Panchay at and Block level; and 
(c) to carry out such other function s as may be assigned t o it by the State 
Council, from time to time 
(4) The District Progra mme Coordinator shall assist the Panchayat at the 
district level in discharging its functions under this Act and any Scheme made 
thereunder. 
14. District Programme Coordinator .- (1) The Chief Executive Officer of the 
District Panchayat or the Collector of the district or any other district level officer 
of appropri ate rank as the State Government may decide i;hall be designa ted as 
the District Programme Coordinator for the implement ation of the Scheme in the 
district. 
· (2) The District Programme Coordinator sha ll be responsible for the 
implem entation of the Scheme in the distr ict in accordance with the provision s 
of this Act and the rules made ther eunder. 
(3) The functions of the District Programme Coordinator shall be-
(a) to assist the district Panchayat irl discharging its functions under this 
Act and any Scheme made thereunder; 
(b) to consolidate the plans prepared by the Blocks and project proposals 
received from other impl ementing agencies for inclusi on in the shelf 
of projects to be approved by the Panchayat at district level; 
(c) to accord necessa ry sanction and administrative clearance, wherever 
necessa ry; 
(d) to coordinat e w ith the Programme Officers fun ctionin g within his 
jurisdiction and the implem entin g agencies to ensure that the 
applicant s are provided employme nt as p er their entitlements w1d er 
this Act; 
(e) to 'review, monitor and supervise the performanc e of the Progra mme 
Officers; 
Sec. 15] The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 17 
(f) to conduct periodic inspection of the works in progress; and · 
(g) to redress the grievances of the applicants. 
(4) The. State Government shall delegate such administrative and financial 
powers to the District Programme Coordinator as may be required to enable him 
to carry out his functions under this Act. 
(5) The Programme Officer appointed w1der sub-section (1) of section 15 and 
all other officers of the State Government and local authorities and bodies 
functioning within the district shall be responsible to assist the District 
Programme Coordinator in carrying out his functions under this Act and the 
Schemes made thereunder. 
(6) The District Programme Coordinator shall prepare in the month of 
December every year a labour budget for the next financial year containing the 
details of anticipated demand for unskilled manual work in the district and the 
plan for engagement of labourers in the works covered under the Scheme and 
submit it to the district panchayat. 
15. Programme Officer.-(1) At every Panchayat at intermediate level, the 
State Government shall appoint a person who is not below the rank of Block 
Development Officer with such qualifications and experience as may be 
determined by the State Government as Programme Officer at the panchayat at 
intermediate level. 
(2) The Programme Officer shall assist the Panchayat at intermediate level in 
discharging its functions under this Act and any Scheme made thereunder. 
. (3) The Programme Officer shall be responsible for matching the demand for 
employment with the employment opportunities arising from projects in the area 
under his jurisdiction. 
(4) The Programme Officer shall prepare a plan for the Block under his 
jurisdiction by consolidating the project proposals prepared by the Gram 
Panchayats and the proposals received from intermediate panchayats. 
(5) The functions of the Programme Officer shall include-
(a) monitoring of projects taken up by the Gram Panchayats and other 
implementing agencies within the Block; 
(b) sanctioning and ensuring payment of unemployment allowance to 
the eligible households; 
(c) ensuring prompt and fair payment of wages to all labourers 
employed under a programme of the Scheme within the Block; 
(d) ensuring that regular social audits of all works within the jurisdiction 
of the Gram Panchayat are carried out by the Gram Sabha and that 
prompt action is taken on t'he objections raised in the social audit; 
(e) dealing promptly with all complaints that may arise in connection 
with the implementation of the Scheme within the Block; and 
(f) any other work as may be assigned to him by the District Programme 
Coordinator or the State Government. 
(6) The Programme Officers shall function under the direction, control and 
superintendence of the District Programme Coordinator . 
18 The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (Sec. 15 
(7) The State G overnm ent may, by order, direct that all or any o f the 
functions of a Programme Officer shall be discharged by the Gram P anchayat or 
a local authority . 
COMMENTS 
This section provides that for every Block, the S tate G overnm ent shall appoint a 
person as the Progra mme Officer for impl ementin g the Scheme in that Block. 
[Notes on Clauses] 
16. Responsibilities of the Gram Panchayats. - (1) The Gram Panchayat 
shall be responsible for identification of the projects in the Gram Panchaya t area 
to be taken up under a Scheme as per the recommendati on

Excerpt shown. Open the full act in Lexace.

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