NREGS funds for toilets at homes

The state government plans to link the National Rural Employment Generations Scheme (NREGS) to construction of individual household lavatories.

Speaking to reporters as part of Praja Hitam here on Thursday, rural development and NREGS minister Dokka Manikya Varaprasad said it was planned to construct 10 lakh individual household lavatories every year and the government would release Rs 10,000 for construction of each lavatory.

Construction of latrines at Anganwadi centres and schools will also be taken up with NREGS funds under total sanitation campaign. The maximum of 20 mandays for unskilled and six man-days for skilled labourers will be created.

The minister said that the social audit of NREGS fund utilisation was giving good results and checking corruption. He said expenditure of Rs 132 crore invited objection in the social audit. But the amount was a meagre 0.59 per cent of the total amount spent on NREGS in the state.

Out of the Rs 132 crore, Rs 59 crore has been confirmed as misappropriated and Rs 19.8 cr has been recovered.