New Delhi, March 29: The revised wage rates for the flagship rural job scheme were announced today, with eastern states getting a minimal or even zero increase but those in the south bagging good hikes.

The new wages per day under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) will be effective from April 1.

Despite the revision, the job scheme wages remained less than the minimum wage fixed by certain states. Social activists panned the Centre for not linking the two rates.

Karnataka saw a significant hike from Rs 204 per day in the last financial year to Rs 224 per day this year. But Bengal got a Rs 2 increase, up to Rs 176. Odisha got no hike at all.

Rural development ministry sources said the MGNREGA wage rate varies from state to state and is revised by indexing it to the consumer price index for agricultural labourers (CPIAL) for that state.

"The CPIAL in eastern states is very low. That is the reason for low increase in wage rate," an official said.

The wage rate is highest in Haryana (Rs 259), followed by Chandigarh (Rs 248) and Kerala (Rs 240). Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand have the lowest wage rate of Rs 167.

Social activist Nikhil Dey criticised the government for delaying implementation of the recommendations of a committee headed by economist Mahendra Dev on revision of job scheme wage rates.

The committee had said that the baseline for MGNREGA wages must be aligned to the current minimum wage rate for unskilled agricultural labourers of a state or the current MGNREGA wage rate, whichever is higher. The revision in subsequent years should be by indexing the wage rate to consumer price index for rural labour instead of CPIAL, it said.

Rural development minister Birender Singh assured has Parliament that the Centre will implement the recommendation.

"Despite the revision, the MGNREGA rates in many states are lower than the minimum wage fixed by the respective state. It is not justified that the Centre will pay less wage than what a state thinks appropriate," Dey said.

For example, the Rajasthan job scheme wage is Rs 181 while the minimum wage is Rs 194.

"At least the government should keep its promise to Parliament...," Dey added.