E-KYC of over 56 per cent active workers under MGNREGS completed: Rural Development Ministry

New Delhi, Nov 21 (PTI) The E-KYC for more than 56 per cent of active workers under the MGNREGS has been completed by the states, the Rural Development Ministry said on Friday, adding that job card verification under the scheme is a "continuous process".

In a statement issued days after a report highlighted a high number of deletions of job cards coinciding with the introduction of e-KYC, the Rural Development Ministry said 99.67 per cent active workers' Aadhar have already been seeded, and that the e-KYC feature could be used as a "simple, reliable, accurate and efficient way of verification of job cards".

LibTech India, a consortium of activists and academicians, highlighted earlier this week that around 27 lakh MGNREGS workers were deleted across India between October 10 and November 14, flagging the large volume as "highly unusual".

While not establishing any direct links, it pointed out that the spike overlaps with the period when e-KYC became mandatory under the scheme from November 1, 2025, and the surge in deletions appears in the same immediate period.

The Rural Development Ministry, in its statement, quoted the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, and said that activities related to job cards like issuance, verification, and renewal, etc, are the responsibility of state governments through panchayat raj institutions like gram panchayats.

"Job card verification is a continuous process, whereas job card renewal is required to be done once in 5 years. To simplify and support these statutory processes, States/UTs have been requested to utilise the e-KYC feature already available in the NMMS app (National Mobile Monitoring System) for job card verification and subsequent renewal after following extant processes," it said.

It said that 99.67 per cent of active workers' Aadhar have already been seeded, and the e-KYC feature could be used as a "simple, reliable, accurate and efficient way of verification of job cards".

"During e-KYC, the Gram Rojgar Sahayak/ Worksite supervisor/Mate/ any other GP level functionary captures a picture of the MGNREGA worker (through the NMMS App e-KYC feature), which is digitally/automatically verified with his/her Aadhar details in real time. The entire process for one worker gets completed under a minute," the Ministry claimed.

They said states have been advised to take necessary measures to make the process as smooth as possible by resolving issues like network connectivity.

"E-KYC can be done anywhere, as decided by the state, such as at worksite, special camps organised by the Gram Panchayat, etc," it said.

The ministry called it a "progressive step aimed at strengthening transparency, efficiency, and ease of service delivery under the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA".

"The states and the ground level functionaries have been adequately oriented, sensitised and trained through various fora to make the verification process as smooth as possible. So far, e-KYC for more than 56% active workers has been completed by the states," it said.

Expressing commitment to ensuring transparency, as well as safeguarding the rights of every genuine worker, the ministry noted that adequate safeguards have been put in place to ensure there is no wrongful deletion of job cards.

"A detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) was issued by the ministry on 24 January 2025. This SOP provides clear, uniform, and transparent guidelines for states to follow, ensuring fairness, accountability, and protection of workers' interests in the management of job card records," it said.

"The ministry remains committed to ensuring that all willing rural households are empowered to avail the entitlements under MGNREGA, while maintaining transparency, accountability and effectiveness," the statement added. PTI AO MPL MPL