Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], January 30 (ANI): Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, along with other Congress leaders, on Friday paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on his death anniversary.

After paying homage, the Congress leaders observed a two-hour fast from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm in protest against the renaming and dilution of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Speaking to the media, the Chief Minister said that the BJP-led Union Government has not only changed the name of MGNREGA but has also undermined the very spirit of the scheme. He stated that the scheme previously provided employment opportunities, especially for youth and women in rural areas, but these avenues are now being curtailed.

Sukhu said, 'previously village pradhans had the powers to undertake works such as road construction under MGNREGA, ensuring employment near people's homes and during the COVID-19 pandemic, the scheme played a crucial role in providing maximum employment to the people. However, the powers of panchayat pradhans have now been taken away.'

The Chief Minister further said, 'For the past 20 years, MGNREGA has guaranteed employment and also provided for an unemployment allowance if work was not offered.'

He said that today's two-hour fast was organised to protest against the systematic dismantling of the scheme. He noted that earlier the Union Government bore 100 per cent of the expenditure under MGNREGA, but it has now shifted to a 90:10 funding pattern, which would adversely affect Himachal Pradesh's interests.

Responding to a query regarding the reduction of import duty on apples, the Chief Minister said he had raised the issue of lowering import duty on apples from New Zealand in his previous meeting with Union Minister Piyush Goyal. (ANI)