New Delhi, March 21 : The Centre has incurred a total expenditure of Rs. 1.78 lakh crore on water conservation and water harvesting works being built through the rural job scheme being implemented under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), the Parliament was informed on Friday.

In the financial year 2024-25, a total of 4.99 lakh water conservation and water harvesting works have been completed, with an expenditure of Rs 17,889.52 crore, Minister of State for Rural Development Kamlesh Paswan told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply.

Water conservation and water harvesting structures have been constructed under the scheme to augment and improve groundwater. The structures include underground dykes, earthen dams, stop dams, check dams and rooftop rainwater harvesting structures in government or panchayat buildings with a special focus on recharging groundwater, including drinking water sources, the minister said.

As on March 18, 2025, a total of 7.61 lakh water conservation and water harvesting works are currently ongoing under the scheme, while 62.89 lakh works have been completed since inception, he said.

Afforestation: tree plantation and horticulture plantation in common and forest lands, road margins, canal bunds, tank foreshore and coastal belts have also been undertaken under the rural employment scheme, the minister pointed out.

As on March 18, 2025, a total of 28.48 lakh plantation works are currently ongoing under the MNREGA while 89.24 lakh works have been completed since the inception of the scheme. The total expenditure incurred on these works amounts to Rs 72,996.52 crore. In the financial year 2024-25, a total of 7.96 lakh plantation works have been completed with an expenditure of Rs. 7762.59 crore, the minister said.

Rural sanitation-related works, such as individual household latrines, school toilet units, and Anganwadi toilets, either independently or in convergence with schemes of other government departments and unskilled wage component for the construction of Community Sanitary Complexes in convergence with Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) to achieve 'open defecation free' status and solid and liquid waste management as per prescribed have also been carried out under the scheme.

As on March 18 this year, a total of 1.68 lakh community rural sanitation works are currently ongoing under the Scheme, while 66.20 lakh works have been completed since the inception of the scheme. The total expenditure incurred on these works stands at Rs 11,452.32 crore. In the financial year 2024-25, a total of 1.06 lakh community rural sanitation works have been completed, with an expenditure of Rs 768.63 crore, the minister said.

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005, provides for the enhancement of livelihood security of the households in rural areas of the country by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in every financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.

The Ministry mandates the provision of an additional 50 days of wage employment (beyond the stipulated 100 days) to every scheduled tribe household in a forest area, provided that these households have no other private property except for the land rights provided under the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006. In addition to this, there is a provision for up to an additional 50 days of wage employment in a financial year in drought/natural calamity-affected notified rural areas, Paswan added.

/IANS