Worried over reports of the delay in wage payment to workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), the government is considering a proposal to pay part of the entitled wage in advance.

Admitting that the government ?has been unable to address the problem of delayed wage payment?, rural development minister CP Joshi told FE that part advance payment of wage to workers ?would keep the interest of workers in the scheme intact?.

In an effort to curb pilferage in wage payment under the NREGA, more than 8 crore savings accounts have been opened with the PSU banks and post offices. ?Still we are unable to pay wage on time as work measurement for wage payment have become quite time-consuming,? Joshi said.

On the banks and post offices demanding 2% service charges for operating NREGA workers savings accounts, Joshi said ?the issue is being dealt with?.

On the impact of the UPA government?s flagship programme, Joshi said that the programme has not only brought down inter state migration of labourers but as led rise in agricultural wage across the country.

?There is a need to think over it the other way round. Agricultural labourers had been exploited for last 50 years. They were engaged for work in fields but not paid adequate wage,? Joshi said.

He added the rural development ministry would reimburse states for up to Rs 100 per day per with an exception of those states such as Kerala and Punjab who were already paying Rs 125 and Rs 140, respectively, to the workers.

In a notification issued on January 1, 2009, the government had specified that it would pay states the minimum wage rate for agricultural labourers under minimum wages act, 1948 prevailing at the states in December, 2008.

Subsequently, many states, including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Tripura and Himachal Pradesh, revised their minimum wage rate for agricultural labourers and asked the rural development ministry to amend the notification to bring out parity with their revised wage.

?The cap of Rs 100 as daily wage would stop states for further hiking agricultural wage rate and help in fiscal planning,? the rural development ministry official had earlier said.

With close to four years into the NREGA implementation, the Centre has allocated over Rs 50,000 crore to states. Nearly two-thirds of this amount has been paid as wages. The centre provides 90% of the total funds requirement for talking up NREGA works.

Out of the total budgetary support of Rs 39,100 crore for Nrega, the rural development ministry has already allocated close to Rs 19,000 crore to the states. Around 5 crore people have already benefitted from the scheme.

?We expect a huge rise in demand for financial allocation from states under Nrega during next two months as agricultural activities have already over in the most of the states,? Joshi said at the social sector editors? meet.