AGARTALA, April 17 (TIWN): When the delay in REGA payment rocking the entire state with the workers staging a series of protests, the CPI-M spokeman Goutam Das on Thursday accusing the Central Govt. said, “It is none other than the Central govt. and its policy who is responsible for the delay in REGA wage payment here at the state. However CPI-M spokesman failed to mention the main reason behind the recent attack on BDOs in different parts of the state and the subsequent mass leave opted by the BDOs shows the mismanagement of the RD Minister Naresh Jamatia and Dept officials. The pressure created by the hierarchy to accomplish the targetted mandays compelled the BDOs to engage the labourers in different jobs in their areas. The works were completed even before the BDOs received the labour wages from the treasury which led to the delay in payment for the already completed mandays in the festival season. The delay in payment made the labourers lose their patience leading to actions of ransacking BDO office, road blockade and even upto the manhadling of the BDOs in some places.

Das alleged that earlier the then central govt. had launched Electronic Fund Management System (EFMS) for ever states in order to pay the REGA wages to the workers, but the present govt. at the centre had suddenly changed the system to Public Fund Management System (PFMS) with effect from April 1, 2015, without making any contact to the states including Tripura.

“This has brought a major hurdle for the state govt. here to pay the REGA wages to the workers,” Das said.  He also alleged that the central govt. is wholly responsible for the delay of the NREGA payment.

Das was talking to the media persons on Thursday at the party headquarter at Melarmath, Agartala.

He said that on March 24, 2015 Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) on its sudden move written to nationalized Bank Chairman to start the PFMS soon with effect from April 1, 2015. Later a copy was given to all the state governments and has been uploaded at the website on March 26, 2015.

Accusing the centre Das said, “Though a sudden copy was handed over with the state govt. here but no further contact was made with the state govt.” He also said that the central govt. has taken the decision of launching the PFMS without holding any meeting with the Chief Ministers or any other state govt. authorities.

However, later saying that the main concern is to make the payment of the REGA wages to the poor labours Das said, “The party here has also urged the state govt. to make a necessary arrangement in order to pay the pending wages soon.”

It is worthy to be mentioned here that when a series of questions raised against the delay in REGA payment recently as how come inspite of available fund with the state govt. the workers across the state are deprived from their wages since more than 4 months?, Das on Thursday coming down heavily on the media persons here said, “A section of media in the state are trying to frame a false information against the state govt.” He however, appealed the media to floor a news based on fact rather than highlighting a false news items on delay of REGA payment.   

The wide spread tension among the MNREGA workers have taken a bigger dimension with reports of more and more BDO offices being ransacked reaching the capital here.