PANAJI: The North Goa District Rural Development Agency’s innovative idea of promoting agriculture and allied activities under   the Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Scheme has found favours with the central agencies, which have not only lauded the agency, but also provided additional funds for further implementation of the scheme.

The project director of the NGDRDA, Mr Gurudas Pilernekar told ‘The Navhind Times’ that construction activities hitherto undertaken under the scheme have almost been stopped and the agency has been promoting activities in the agricultural, horticultural, floricultural, etc, fields, which would help the scheme beneficiaries earn some income continuously over the years and provide them continuous employment and help in self-development.
Mr Pilernekar further said that these activities have now been permitted under the scheme and that there are many takers for it, adding the utilization of the funds by the agency headed by him under the scheme has been the highest.
He also said that the central government has sanctioned an additional amount of Rs 10 crore and if it is utilised by January next year, an additional amount of ` 10 crore is promised.
The NGDRDA chief officer further said that he has not only met the targets but also exceeded them and utilized funds earmarked.  He also said that he has been reaching out to the rural poor with the help of elected representatives at the panchayat levels, who have been showing keen interest in taking the projects to help the poor people in their areas.
Besides, the Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Guarantee Scheme, the other centrally sponsored schemes implemented in the state by the NGDRDA are Indira Awas Yojana, Swarna Jayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana, National Family Benefit Scheme, National Old Age Pension Scheme, National Widow Pension Scheme, National Physically Disabled Pension Scheme and Balika Samruddhi Yojana.
The agency also implements two state-sponsored schemes in the form of Goa Gram Urja Yojana and Goa Gramin Samruddhi Yojana. All the schemes are meant for the people living below poverty line category, said Mr Pilernekar adding that the number of families in the BPL category is over 19,000 in the state, which have risen significantly from 7,400 in 2008 after many of the pending cases were decided by the mamlatdars.
He further said that there are many takers for state-sponsored schemes as a result of which he has sought additional funds to the tune of ` 12.5 crore (` 2.5 crore for GGUY and ` 10 crore for GGSY, under which construction of panchayats ghars, boundary walls for burial grounds, etc were undertaken.
Meanwhile, Mr Pilernekar would leave for New Delhi on Wednesday to participate in a training programme aimed at creating awareness among the people of a targeted block about the schemes of the central government.
He further said that as per the central government directives Pernem taluka has been selected for creating awareness and that subsequently such programmes would be held all over the state.