MLA celebrates May Day with MGNREGA workers in Aland

The Hindu

01-05-2025

Aland MLA and Deputy Chairperson of the Karnataka State Policy and Planning Commission B.R. Patil celebrated International Workers Day on Thursday by joining MGNREGA workers engaged in the dredging of Dhannur Lake in Aland taluk.
Hundreds of workers, engaged under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), took a brief pause from their work to participate in the May Day celebrations at the worksite.
In his address, Mr. Patil raised concern over the rising consumption of alcohol in rural areas, describing it as a growing social crisis. He called upon gram panchayats to pass resolutions banning alcohol sales within their jurisdictions and urged women representatives to spearhead the movement.
'It is unfortunate that liquor is more accessible in remote villages than safe drinking water,' he said.
'Daily wage workers often spend a major portion of their earnings on alcohol, pushing their families into deeper distress. Women are disproportionately affected and are demanding an end to this menace. At least half of the members in gram panchayats are women,' he said.
'They should push the agenda of getting alcohol banned in their gram panchayat jurisdiction. If passing resolutions by gram panchayats prohibiting the sale of alcohol did not work, you need to come to the streets and I will join you in that fight,' he said.
Pointing to the ₹45,000 crore in annual revenue earned by the State government through the Excise Department, Mr. Patil said that causing harm to individuals and society in the name of revenue generation is a sin.
'It is morally indefensible to profit from a substance that causes damage to public health. Prohibition in a single State is ineffective. What we need is a nationwide ban,' he said, urging the Union government to take a bold, countrywide stance on liquor prohibition.
Mr. Patil also took the opportunity to highlight the non-payment of MGNREGA wages, blaming the Union government for withholding funds.
'It is unacceptable that workers have not been paid for three months. The Gruha Lakshmi scheme, under which the State provides ₹2,000 per month each to woman head of a household, has provided some relief, but the Centre must release MGNREGA funds without delay,' he said.
He praised local taluk panchayat officials for aligning MGNREGA projects with the needs of the farming community, noting that Aland is the only constituency in the State to have secured approval for 472 open wells on farmland for irrigation. A proposal for an additional 378 wells is under consideration.
'Half the wells already dug have struck groundwater. The others are expected to fill during the monsoon. This initiative not only aids irrigation but also contributes to groundwater recharge. Plans are also under way to construct check-dams across several watercourses in the constituency to further support water conservation efforts,' he said.
The event was attended by Gram Panchayat president Hasina Bai, Taluk Panchayat Executive Engineer Manappa Kattimani, Congress leader Bhimashankar Patil, social worker Alibaba and other local representatives.