Rayagada: In Rayagada district, the number of migrant laborers is increasing day by day. The current generation of youth, who are working as migrant laborers, now have new addresses — Surat, Andhra Pradesh, Bangalore, Chennai, and Guntur. As a result, these young people have been staying away from their native villages for years, forgetting to return home.
Due to a lack of employment under schemes like MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) or the 100-day work scheme, many youths are being forced to work as migrant laborers.
Especially in the Kashipur region, many young people are no longer present in their villages. To earn a livelihood, many young men and women from every panchayat have gone to Andhra Pradesh to work in shrimp processing units. As a result, during this year’s mandatory ration card (NFSA) KYC form-filling process, many migrant workers could not participate.
In blocks like Gunupur Subdivision’s Gadhi village, Bairagi Halua, Kereda, Shesha Khal, Kuli, Mirabali, and Karubai Panchayats, many young people have migrated to other states to support their families — leaving only the elderly parents behind at home.
According to records, in 2021 there were 2,26,151 job card beneficiaries in Rayagada district. In the past three years, this number has reduced to 1,57,287 job card-holding families — a decrease of 68,864. Due to Aadhaar-related issues, many beneficiaries have lost their job cards, according to a local officer.
The government has failed to implement any long-term plan to improve the financial conditions of the youth. Previously, in 11 blocks of the district, a total of 38,72,287 labor days had been generated, but the administration has since failed to generate more labor days. However, under the employment guarantee scheme, some labor days have been generated for the youth.
District Panchayati Raj Development Officer Ashok Khemundi stated that a plan is currently being prepared to generate more labor days in the coming days.
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