The Ministry of Rural Development has notified a 3-10 per cent increase in wage rates for unskilled manual workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), for the upcoming fiscal year 2024-25.

Rural Development Ministry, which administers the MGNREGA scheme, had recently obtained the Election Commission’s permission to notify the revised wage rates as the model code of conduct is already in force across the country for the upcoming General Elections.

This revision is similar to the hike that was announced for the current financial year back in March 2023. The new wage rates will come into force from 1 April 2024.

Currently, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) wages are decided based on changes in the CPI-AL (Consumer Price Index- Agriculture Labor), which reflects inflation in rural areas.

Goa and Karnataka have seen the highest percentage increase,Rs.356 and Rs.349 respectively.Wage rates in Arunachal Pradesh,Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand are set to see the lowest increase at 3 per cent for Fiscal Year 24-25. Andhra Pradesh,Telangana and Chattisgarh saw robust percentage increases.