Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia today dismissed reports that the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) has failed in half the states. He said though the scheme had not worked as expected in some states, it had largely been a success. There have been several news reports lately on the fact that the Plan panel chief had told the government that NREGS has failed to deliver jobs to those who need them the most. He had also reportedly informed the government that the scheme had completely failed in several states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Orissa, Gujarat and Maharashtra.

However, speaking at a book launch here, he said, “The assessment of the NREGS has worked out well, though its effectiveness varies across states.” He added that the assessment audit that had formed the basis of the media reports had been done six months ago and was based on data till only December last year.

Pointing out that the NREGS has been far more successful than the employment scheme under the previous government, he added that the scheme as generated three times the level of employment in the year before the UPA government came to power. “We also said that farmers in some part of the country were complaining that labour has become more difficult to get, which is an indication that the scheme is actually working,” he said.

However, he added there are some areas of concern as regards the guidelines and the framework of the scheme and slight modifications can make it better. “Certain guidelines can be modified and there are aspects that need to be looked at for providing more flexibility to states,” he said.