MGNREGA Wage Delays: Impact on Rural Labourers in Washim and Chandrapur

thenewsdirt
Apr 18
4 min read

The sun beats down on the cracked earth of Vidarbha's Washim, where fields lie fallow and the promise of work feels like a distant hope.

In Chandrapur, families gather under sparse shade, awaiting news that might ease their hunger. Across rural India, millions cling to a government scheme meant to offer stability, but for many, that support arrives too late, or not at all.

The Broken Promise of Timely Wages

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), launched in 2005, guarantees 100 days of paid work to every rural household willing to take up manual labour.

It’s a cornerstone of India’s rural economy, designed to provide income when farming slows.

Yet, for countless workers, their wages remain unpaid for weeks, sometimes months. A study analysing 31.36 million transactions from 2021-22 revealed the central government owes roughly Rs 39 crore in delayed wages, with only 29% of payments processed within the mandated seven days.

In some cases, 14% of workers waited over a month for their earnings. These delays stem from multiple sources. The introduction of digital payment systems, such as the Aadhaar-Based Payment System (ABPS), was meant to streamline transfers.

Instead, it has faltered. By January 2024, only 43% of workers were eligible for ABPS, leaving many excluded from faster payments. A detailed analysis published in 2025 found no notable improvement in timely disbursals with ABPS compared to traditional methods.

Another policy, implemented in 2021, sorted wages by caste, Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Others, creating disparities. Payments to SC workers reached 47% within seven days, ST workers 42%, but only 33% for those classified as Others, sowing division among communities reliant on the same scheme.

Funding shortages further compound the issue. MGNREGA’s budget, once 0.41% of India’s GDP in 2021-22, shrank to 0.2% by 2024-25. The allocation for 2024-25 stood at Rs 86,000 crore, unchanged from the previous year, despite rising demand. This shortfall limits the government’s ability to clear pending wages or expand work opportunities.

Administrative hurdles, like delayed attendance records and errors in generating fund transfer orders, add to the bottleneck, leaving workers in limbo.

The Toll on Washim and Chandrapur

Washim and Chandrapur suffer due to a lack of NREGA Funds

In Maharashtra’s Washim and Chandrapur districts, MGNREGA is a lifeline. These regions, marked by small farms and seasonal rains, see agricultural work dry up outside harvest periods.

Families turn to MGNREGA for jobs like digging wells or building roads, expecting wages to cover food, school fees, and medical needs. When payments stall, the consequences ripple through households.

In Washim, labourers often gather at village squares, hoping for updates on delayed funds. The wait stretches days into weeks, forcing tough choices.

Some skip meals to stretch their supplies; others borrow from local lenders, charging steep interest. Chandrapur, with its history of heavy MGNREGA reliance, tells a similar story.

A 2020 report noted the district used over 100% of its allocated funds, a sign that earlier years’ unpaid wages were being cleared later, delaying current payments. Though data specific to 2024-25 is sparse, national trends suggest little has changed.

The non-harvest season, spanning months like April to June, heightens the strain. Without farm work, MGNREGA becomes the primary income source. Delayed wages mean families can’t buy seeds for the next planting or pay for children’s books.

In both districts, the lack of timely funds pushes some to leave their villages, seeking work in cities like Nagpur or Mumbai. These migrations split families, with parents leaving children behind, disrupting schooling and community ties.

Social divides also deepen. The caste-based payment system, though meant to track funds, has led to uneven delays. Workers from marginalised groups in Washim and Chandrapur often wait longer than others, fostering tension at worksites where all labour side by side.

The Rs 399 million owed in delay compensation remains unpaid, hitting the most vulnerable hardest.

A Cycle of Dependence and Delay

The rural life in Washim and Chandrapur hinges on the predictability of knowing when crops will grow, when rains will come, and when wages will arrive. MGNREGA’s delays disrupt this balance.

Labourers work under the sun, digging trenches or laying stones, only to return home empty-handed. The promise of Rs 200-300 per day, modest but critical, stays out of reach.

Nationally, the scale is staggering. With 71% of wages delayed beyond a week in 2021-22, millions face the same uncertainty. In districts like Washim, where alternative jobs are scarce, the impact is acute.

A single delayed payment can mean a family postpones a doctor’s visit or sells a goat to cover costs. In Chandrapur, where forests and farms dominate, the lack of funds limits even small purchases, like kerosene or soap.

The programme’s design assumes workers can wait, but reality differs. Non-harvest seasons leave no buffer where every rupee counts.

When wages lag, some turn to informal credit, trapping them in debt cycles. Others cut back on essentials, with children bearing the brunt through missed meals or dropped classes.

The caste-based disparities add another layer, with some workers paid faster than their neighbours for the same tasks, eroding trust in a system meant to unify.

Job allocations, though less documented, face similar constraints. Budget cuts mean fewer projects start on time, limiting workdays.

In 2024-25, the stagnant Rs 86,000 crore allocation suggests not all households receive their full 100 days.

For Washim and Chandrapur, this translates to fewer ditches dug, fewer roads built, and fewer wages earned when families need them most.

In Chandrapur, men sit by tea stalls, swapping stories of work done and wages still owed. The fields stretch wide, but the promise of security feels narrow, slipping through fingers like dry soil. For these communities, MGNREGA is the difference between a meal today and hunger tomorrow.