A call for innovation in Government Services

NREGS is making lots of noises in media as well as in the country side. If reports are to be believed NREGS is having some positive side effects such as an increase in the minimum wage level in many states. But large scale corruption and lack of any permanent asset creation is making several people question the wisdom and sustainability of the much touted program. One reason why the Babus and local netas are getting away with corruption is the ignorance of unskilled laborers. Being illiteracy is a major problem for our nation and a root cause for corruption, especially in the villages, why can't the Government use NREGS for a literacy mission; just pay the laborers for attending literacy classes. May be 30 day classes per year for three years will be sufficient for majority of the illiterate laborers to attain functional literacy. Responsibility for taking the classes can be given to NGOs whoa re already working with these populations. If the example from Kerala has to be believed such a large scale literacy mission will be a success if it has necessary funds, large scale participation of people and support from government. Any way NREGS is not about creating long term infrastructure for nation, since the restriction on material cost severely affect the capability of NREGS to create any kind of long lasting infrastructure, so why don’t we use it to create a real, long lasting, high impact asset for the nation like literacy for its teeming millions?