By IANS
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday said his government’s flagship programme to assure 100 days of work for every rural family in some 300 districts will now be extended to the entire country.
“Through the historic National Rural Employment Guarantee Act we have made basic employment for 100 days a legal right,” Manmohan Singh said in his independence day address at the Red Fort.
“As a result, the poorest of poor are now assured of minimum household income. Today, half the country is covered by the programme. We are now committed to implementing it across the entire country.
“We are confident that this social safety net will fulfill (Mahatma) Gandhiji’s dream of antyodaya – our humble attempt to wipe the tears of the poor.”
Under the programme, launched in 2005, one member of every family in rural area is guaranteed 100 days of employment as part of the prime minister’s promise of giving “a new deal to rural India”.