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PM directs Plan Panel to address gaps

By The Assam Tribune

NEW DELHI, July 14 � Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today expressed surprise that concurrent evaluation of NREGA scheme is �not in good shape� and directed the Planning Commission to address the deficiency and �gaps�, reports PTI.

Making it clear that he was not �fully satisfied� with the way the scheme is working, he noted the problems like delayed payment to workers under the government�s flagship and said these should be addressed at the earliest.

�The Mahatma Gandhi NREGA story in numbers is a story worth telling.... The scheme scores high on inclusivness...No welfare scheme in recent memory has caught the imagination of the people as much as NREGA has,� Singh said.

�...(but) statistics do not tell the whole truth,� he said while releasing �NREGA Sameeksha�, a collection of research studies conducted on the programme under which Rs 1,10,000 crore have been spent to pay wages to 1,200 crore people. Singh said he was �surprised to hear from (Rural Development Minister) Jairam Ramesh that concurrent evaluation processes are not in good shape�.

He referred to the �gaps� highlighted by Ramesh and Planning Commission member Mihir Shah that need to be fixed.

Concurrent evaluation is the assessment of the impact of the scheme while it is implemented, without waiting for annual or any other periodic audit.

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