Bihar

• 09 Jan 2024

Aadhar Seeding for NREGS Card Holders

Why in News?

By mid-January 2024, Bihar is expected to complete the process of linking Aadhar cards of all job card holders under MGNREGS (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme).

• It is part of the Centre’s directive to states to implement Aadhar-based payment of wages to beneficiaries under the scheme.

Key Points

• The Centre had made AePS (Aadhar enabled Payment System) mandatory for all job card holders under MGNREGS from January 1.
• It means payments as wages to beneficiaries for their work would be made directly into their bank accounts linked and verified through their Aadhar number after due mapping by National Payments Corporation of India (NCPI).
• In Bihar, the total number of job card holders under MNREGA is 1.80 crore, of which 1.52 crore have their bank accounts linked with their Aadhar (unique identification) numbers.
  • Of these around 96 lakh active workers (who have been working regularly), around 94 lakh have their bank accounts linked with Aadhar while 79.63 lakh are eligible for payments under AePS.
• In the current fiscal year (2023-24), Bihar has generated 15.64 crore mandays (a day regarded in terms of the amount of work that can be done by one person within this period) so far against the sanctioned 17 crore under the scheme, which is meant to provide at least 100 days of work to unskilled rural workers in a year.
  • A proposal for grant of another 8 crore mandays for work generation in this fiscal would be sent by Bihar to the ministry of rural development.

Aadhar

• It is a 12-digit individual identification number issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India on behalf of the Government of India.
  • The number serves as proof of identity and address, anywhere in India.
• The Aadhaar number is unique for each individual and will remain valid for life time.
  • Establishes identity of individuals on the basis of demographic and biometric information.
• It will help the residents to avail various services provided by banking, mobile phone connections and other Government and Non-Government services in due course.