Special Gram Sabhas to Be Held in All 229 Gram Panchayats of Uttara Kannada Before August 15
District administration steps up rural employment and development efforts under the VBG Ram G Mission amid weak monsoon conditions.
Karwar: The Uttara Kannada district administration will conduct special Gram Sabhas in all 229 Gram Panchayats before August 15 to accelerate the implementation of the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission, also known as the VBG Ram G Mission.
The initiative comes as below normal monsoon rainfall has slowed agricultural activities across the district. The special meetings are aimed at creating more local employment opportunities while identifying development works that meet the needs of rural communities.
Residents have been encouraged to actively participate in the Gram Sabhas and suggest community projects as well as individual benefit schemes. Their feedback will help prepare the Gram Panchayat Development Plan, ensuring that local priorities are reflected in future development projects.
Under the revised scheme, the number of employment days available to each eligible family has been increased from 100 to 125 days. Daily wages have also been raised from Rs 375 to Rs 382. A family holding a valid job card can now earn up to Rs 47,750 in a year, with wages transferred directly to workers’ bank accounts.
Officials said that applicants seeking employment through Form 6 must be provided work within 15 days of submitting their application. If employment cannot be offered within this period, eligible applicants will receive unemployment allowance as per the rules. Authorities have also assured that wage payments will be made without unnecessary delays.
The scheme allows the execution of 318 different types of development works. These include the construction and improvement of government school buildings, primary health centres, bus stands, rural parks, libraries, and other public infrastructure projects.
At present, Uttara Kannada district has around 2.02 lakh job cards covering approximately 4.38 lakh registered workers. Of these, nearly 1.24 lakh are active workers. People who wish to obtain a new job card can register free of cost at their respective Gram Panchayats by submitting copies of their ration card, Aadhaar card, and bank passbook.
The district administration has also given special importance to water conservation projects considering the local geographical conditions. Priority will be given to works such as check dams, lake development, restoration of traditional water bodies, farm wells, rainwater harvesting systems, and borewell recharge projects.
Uttara Kannada Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Dr Dilish Shashi said the VBG Ram G Mission offers significant employment and development opportunities for rural residents. He added that necessary instructions have been issued to officials for effective implementation of the scheme and urged people across the district to make full use of its benefits.