G.O. (Ms.) No. 103, Closed User Group Facility for MGNREGS Officers, 2014

What the government order does

G.O. (Ms.) No. 103 of the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (CGS.1) Department, dated 20 August 2014, authorises the Commissioner of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj to add 3,912 Deputy Block Development Officers and 2,602 Union Overseers to a Closed User Group mobile network. The required procurement must follow the procedures and rules framed under the Tamil Nadu Tender Transparency Act, 1998 and Rules, 2000.

The permission follows an announcement made in the Legislative Assembly on 1 August 2014 by the Minister for Municipal Administration, Rural Development, Law, Courts and Prisons. That announcement proposed SIM cards costing Rs.1.29 crore for the identified officers.

Why the facility was approved

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme was being implemented in 31 districts of Tamil Nadu and required daily monitoring and communication at several administrative levels. The number of worksites in Village Panchayats had increased after more than one work was permitted and individual beneficiary works, including farm ponds, plantations and land development activities, were introduced.

The government recorded the following operational reasons:

• Deputy Block Development Officers act as nodal or link officers, oversee works and monitor wage payments through banks or banking correspondents.
• Deputy Block Development Officers also participate in finalising Village Panchayat works and conducting Gram Sabha meetings for approval of works and labour budgets.
• Union Overseers visit worksites, supervise technical work and need mobile communication to report on-site technical matters to other officials.
• A common communication network was considered necessary for effective implementation of the scheme and other state flagship schemes.

Earlier coverage and the change

G.O. (Ms.) No. 90 of the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (CGS.1) Department, dated 24 July 2013, had permitted Closed User Group services for officers at state and district levels, covering specified administrative and technical posts. G.O. (Ms.) No. 103 expands that network to Deputy Block Development Officers and Union Overseers working closer to Village Panchayat worksites.

Who is affected

G.O. (Ms.) No. 103 directly affects the named rural development officers and the authorities responsible for procuring and administering their mobile facilities. Property buyers and landowners are not given any new rights, restrictions, approvals or duties under the document, although some scheme works supervised by these officers may include land development activities.