(Top) Chief secretary Bijay Kumar Patnaik. (Above) map of undivided Koraput district comprising Nabarangapur, Rayagada and Malkangiri.

Bhubaneswar, April 28: Fruits of government schemes, it seems, are not reaching the beneficiaries at the grassroot-level owing to flaws in implementation of these plans. This was felt by chief secretary Bijay Patnaik during his recent field visit to undivided Koraput district.

“Of course, there are flaws in implementation at the grassroot levels. There needs to be more transparency and pro-activeness in implementation of various welfare schemes,” said Patnaik while talking to newspersons here today.

“Advanced planning and preparations should be made for effective implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) so that the beneficiaries get wage employment for at least 100 days a year,” he said.

Official sources said the chief secretary came to know during his visit to Dasmantpur block that out of 23,342 job-seeker families who had been issued job cards, employment was provided to only 8,910 families.

Significantly, only 440 families had been given wage employment for mandatory 100 days a year, who accounted for only 5 per cent of the total job-seeking families in the block.

Expressing his displeasure over poor implementation of the MNREGS in the tribal-dominated district, Patnaik had reportedly directed the district collector and the panchayati raj department officials to ensure wage employment for 100 days at least to 30 per cent of the job seekers.

Similarly, the chief secretary came across allegations about delay in payment of wages to the beneficiaries in the undivided Koraput district and asked the officials to inquire into the matter and report to him, official sources said.

The Orissa government has been facing allegations about irregularities in implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

The Delhi-based Centre for Environment and Food Security had conducted a survey in six districts in Orissa and pointed out several irregularities.

Instances of the mid-day meal scheme not being implemented properly in the anganwadi centres of Rayagada also came to the notice of the top bureaucrat, said sources.

“I have asked the district collector to take action against the anganwadi workers and others for the laxity,” said Patnaik.

The chief secretary also reportedly found largescale vacancies in primary schools across the district.

“The teacher vacancy problem will be solved after recruitment of 24,000 siksha sahayaks in the state,” he said. The chief secretary will chair a meeting here tomorrow to review problems of the undivided Koraput district.