Parliament Question: Direct Benefit Transfer under MGNREGS

O.I.H.

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3884 ANSWERED ON 11/08/2026 DIRECT BENEFIT TRANSFER UNDER MGNREGS

3884. Shri Satpal Brahamchari:

Shri Jai Parkash:

Will the Minister of RURAL DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government is aware of complaints regarding delays in wage payments to workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in Sonipat and Hisar Lok Sabha Constituencies of Haryana;

(b) if so, the details regarding the number of registered MGNREGS workers, man-days generated, sanctioned, time-line for wage payments, disbursed wages and delayed payments within the above Constituencies during the last three years, year-wise;

(c) the steps taken by the Government to ensure timely payment of pending wages through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and to resolve technical and administrative bottlenecks;

(d) whether any special initiatives have been undertaken to enhance the efficiency of the digital payment system, Aadhaar- based Payment System (ABPS) and grievance redressal mechanism; and

(e) if so, the details thereof and the outcomes achieved in the Sonipat and Hisar Lok Sabha Constituencies? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT (SHRI KAMLESH PASWAN)

(a) & (b): Consequent upon the commencement of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission (Gramin): VB–G RAM G Act, 2025, the scheme has been successfully implemented across the rural areas of the country with effect from 1st July, 2026 including Haryana. With regard to VB- G RAM G Scheme it is stated that an Interim Allocation of Rs. 590.19 crore has been made as Central Share for financial year 2026-27 for the period between 01.07.2026 to Page 1 of 531.03.2027 to the State of Haryana. Subsequently, Mother Sanctions amounting to Rs. 194.93 crore have been issued as first instalment for various components based on the proposal received from the State.

Payment of wages under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (Mahatma Gandhi NREGS), which stands repealed with effect from 01.07.2026 on commencement of implementation of VB-G RAM G it is stated that fund release to States/UTs, including State of Haryana is a continuous process. Under the Scheme, the Wage payments are directly credited by the Central Government to the accounts of the beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer protocol. Sanctions for Wage payments are issued daily by the Ministry through the Public Finance Management System (PFMS) based on fund transfer orders received from the States/ UTs after following due procedures. At the beginning of each financial year, admissible pending liabilities of the previous years, if any, are duly reimbursed by the Government of India.

Accordingly, all due and admissible pending wage liabilities upto FY 2025-26 have already been cleared.

Details of % of Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs) generated within 15 days from the closure of muster rolls Sonipat and Hisar district of Haryana under the Scheme during the last three financial years are

given below: % of Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs) generated within 15 days from the closure of muster rolls Financial Year Sonipat district Hisar district 2023-24 94.31 82.54 2024-25 97.47 99.5 2025-26 93.83 97.23 As per NREGASoft Details of registered workers in Sonipat and Hisar district of Haryana under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS during the last three financial

years are given below: (Figure in lakh) Financial Registered workers in Registered workers in Year Sonipat District Hisar District 2023-24 0.69 2.54 2024-25 0.69 2.54 2025-26 0.69 2.54 As per NREGASoft Page 2 of 5Details of persondays generated in Sonipat and Hisar district of Haryana under the Mahatma Gandhi NREGS during the last three

financial years are given below: (Figure in lakh) Financial Persondays generated in Persondays generated in Year Sonipat District Hisar District 2023-24 4.05 24.3 2024-25 3.86 24.3 2025-26 2.5 12.1 As per NREGASoft

(c): Under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS, the wage payments are directly credited by the Central Government to the accounts of the beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer protocol based on Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs) generated by concerned State/UT Government. As per the provisions of the Act, beneficiaries are entitled to receive wage payments within 15 days of closure of muster rolls. The Government continuously monitors the implementation of Mahatma Gandhi NREGS through the Management Information System (MIS), regular review meetings and other appropriate mechanisms and whenever any specific implementation issue comes into the notice of the Ministry efforts are made to resolve the same at the earliest.

Further, in order to ensure timely payment, the Government of India has issued a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure

(SOP) to all States/UTs, which defines fixed timelines for each stage of the wage payment process from muster roll uploading to FTO approval. The Ministry along with the States/UTs has been making concerted efforts for improving the timely payment of wages.

States/UTs have been advised to generate pay orders in time.

In addition, the Ministry has taken various steps to ensure timely payment of wages to workers under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS. These

include:  Improvement of National Electronic Fund Management System (Ne-FMS)  Intensive consultation with State Governments and other stakeholders for ensuring timely payment of wages, verification of pending and delay compensation claims etc.

 Formulation of Standard Operating Procedure for monitoring of timely payment and payment of delay compensation.

Page 3 of 5 Reviewing the status of timely payment and payment of delay compensation with the States/ UTs during periodic meetings,  Performance Review Committee meetings, Mid-term Reviews etc.

Further, continued efforts have been undertaken by the Ministry through various technological interventions for ensuring timely payments of wages. Some of the key interventions include:  Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT): Wages are transferred directly from the central account to workers’ bank accounts, minimizing the role of intermediaries. This has proven to be effective in enhancing transparency and preventing leakages. Almost 100% of the funds are managed electronically with the wage payment made entirely through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) protocol.

 Aadhaar Payment Bridge System (APBS): APBS conversion is a major reform process where benefits are credited directly into the bank accounts based on the Aadhaar of the workers under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS, preferably Aadhaar Based Payments, cutting several layers in the delivery process. APBS helps in better targeting, increasing the efficiency of the system and reducing the delays in payments, ensuring greater inclusion by curbing leakages thereby promoting greater accountability and transparency.

 National Mobile Monitoring System (NMMS): Real-time attendance capture through geo-tagged photographs at the worksite ensures accurate and timely recording of attendance, which helps in timely payment of wages.

Further as per the provisions mentioned in Schedule-II of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (Mahatma Gandhi NREGA), wage seekers shall be entitled to receive payment of compensation for the delay, at the rate of 0.05% of the unpaid wages per day of delay beyond the sixteenth day of closure of muster roll. Delay compensation rules are notified by the State Government concerned. The amount due for compensation is duly verified and approved, and then paid by the concerned State Government.

(d) & (e): To ensure timely payment of wages to the beneficiaries under Mahatma Gandhi NREGS and to address the issues arising due to frequent changes in bank account numbers of the beneficiaries and subsequent non-updation, it was decided to implement Aadhar Payment Bridge System (APBS). This has been made mandatory with effect from 1st January 2024.

Page 4 of 5APBS helps in improving the transparency and accountability of wage distribution under the scheme and ensure faster crediting of wages in the account of beneficiaries. Aadhar Authentication also reduces leakage and corruption and ensures that only legitimate beneficiaries with verified identities receive wages. In case of failure in payment through APBS, an alternative route to make payment is available through account-based payment that is National Automated Clearing House.

Here, it is also stated that, the Government has undertaken several initiatives to enhance the efficiency of the digital payment system and grievance redressal mechanism under the erstwhile Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

(MGNREGS) and these provisions have been further strengthened under the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025. These include Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of wages through the Aadhaar-based Payment System

(ABPS), electronic Fund Management System (e-FMS), Aadhaar seeding, digital generation of Fund Transfer Orders (FTOs), real-time monitoring through the Management Information System (MIS), and a technology-enabled grievance redressal mechanism with provision for registration, tracking and timely disposal of grievances.

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