Over 7.43 Lakh 'Fake' MGNREGA Job Cards Deleted In 2022-23, Highest In UP: Centre

More than 7.43 lakh fake MGNREGA job cards were removed during the fiscal year 2022-23 with Uttar Pradesh reporting the highest number of deletions at over 2.96 lakh fake job cards.

In a recent update, the Centre informed the Lok Sabha that more than 7.43 lakh fake job cards under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) were removed during the fiscal year 2022-23. Minister of State for Rural Development, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, shared these details in a written response to a query, as per news agency PTI.

The data revealed a significant increase in the removal of fake job cards compared to the previous fiscal year. In 2021-22, 3,06,944 fake job cards were deleted, while the number soared to 7,43,457 in the following year. Uttar Pradesh reported the highest number of deletions, with over 2.96 lakh fake job cards identified as part of this purge.

Minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti provided a state-wise breakdown of the deletions. Uttar Pradesh led the list with a staggering 2,96,464 in 2022-23 after 67,937 fake job cards were deleted in 2021-23. Odisha followed with 1,14,333 deletions in the latest fiscal year and 50,817 in 2021-22.

Jyoti explained that the process of deletion and updating of job cards is ongoing. As per Section 25 of the MGNREGA Act, violators can face fines of up to Rs 1,000. She highlighted the mandatory Aadhaar seeding for de-duplication of the beneficiaries' database as a preventive measure against the issuance of fake job cards.

Meanwhile, amidst the crackdown on fake job cards, the Minister shared that 6,47,845 new job cards were issued in 2022-23. This comes after 1,20,63,967 new job cards were released in 2021-22, and 1,91,05,369 in the pandemic-affected year of 2020-21.

In a related response during the Monsoon session, Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh disclosed that job cards for over 5.18 crore workers were deleted in 2022-23. This marked a substantial increase of 247.06 per cent compared to the previous year when more than 1.49 crore job cards were deleted.

Job cards face deletion for various reasons, including being identified as fake or duplicate, or when beneficiaries move out of a panchayat area or pass away.

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