The village Panchayat of Dangrakheda lies some 12 km from Bagli. Its three villages – Bori, Banjargadh, Dangrakheda – are inhabited by poor Adivasi families, who either subsist on agricultural labour or migrate in search of work to Gujarat and Maharashtra.

At a monthly Employment Day meeting organised by Samaj Pragati Sahayog’s Health and Nutrition Programme team, the villagers spoke of the sparse agricultural wage labour they rely on, in the absence of other livelihood options. That was when Dharmendra Jhiloria, the Programme Senior Mitaan (community resource person), explained how the villagers could apply via the Panchayat, asking for work under the MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) scheme. A job card would guarantee a minimum of 100 days’ employment a year, at a wage rate of Rs 221 per day. The villagers responded with enthusiasm, and immediately drafted an application, which they submitted to the Panchayat’s Assistant Secretary for Employment.

Consequently, in November 2023, a local project was initiated under MGNREGA to dig a contour trench in the forest, which provided work to 15 persons. The workers were happy to gain employment that allowed them to remain with their families and not have to migrate, but when their wages remained unpaid a couple of weeks down the line, they went to seek an explanation from the Secretary, accompanied by Dharmendra Jhiloria. The Secretary claimed the money had been held up by higher authorities, but promised it would be in their accounts within a week. However, when two months had gone by without any pay, all of them struck work.

Dharmendra exhorted the workers not to stop, assuring them that their dues would be paid. They were planning to take their problem to the Janpad Panchayat, the District Council in Bagli, when they heard that the Collector was touring the area and was due to visit the Bangrakheda Panchayat. What could be better than to approach him directly?

In February 2024, the Collector arrived for a meeting held in the chaupaal (open meeting place) of Bori village, and attended by members of the Hissedari Sabhas (women’s platforms for discussing local problems as well as issues pertaining to their rights) of all three villages. He engaged with the community on concerns relating to education, health, employment, agriculture, and other matters. As he was leaving for Bagli at the conclusion of the event, the MGNREGA workers blocked his way, and told him in detail about the problem they were facing. The Collector promised not only that their dues would be paid without further delay, but that he would take steps to ensure the problem did not recur.

Soon after, in March, the workers’ accounts were credited with their back wages, which by then amounted to a total of roughly Rs 1,59,120.

Writer: Iqbal Hussain

Source and Photography: Dharmendra Jhiloria