MGNREGA contract workers in Karnataka unpaid for last four months: Report
Officials cite central government’s failure to release funds
Gadag: Outsourced employees of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Karnataka have not received their salaries for the past four months, with many citing technical issues related to new software not being integrated with the state's Khajane II (K2) system, which manages state government employee payments.
The state has 3,657 outsourced staff working under the scheme, including 27 disaster management officials, 27 district account managers, 202 technical coordinators, and others. These workers have not been paid since July and have also gone without travel and dearness allowances for the past 10 months, as reported by The New Indian Express.
However, officials have pointed out that the delay in payments is due to the central government’s failure to release the necessary funds for MGNREGA.
“We have sorted out all technical glitches, but now funds have not been released by the Central government,” TNIE quoted an official from the Gadag zilla panchayat as saying.
The staff, whose salaries range from Rs 10,000 to Rs 45,000, have voiced growing concerns about their financial struggles. One worker shared that he has no money to pay for the bus fare to reach the village to attend to his work, while others are struggling to pay for their children’s school fees and basic family expenses.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
