# Bengal drive to bring 22 lakh migrant workers under job scheme 2026-08-26T06:18:46+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet West Bengal has launched a special drive to bring over 22 lakh identified migrant workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme. The Panchayats and Rural Development Department has directed all districts to issue job cards to eligible families that have not yet received them and to verify existing cards for full coverage, an official said on Tuesday. Government data shows 22,24,060 migrant workers identified across 22 districts, with Murshidabad accounting for the highest number at 3,86,191, followed by Malda at 2,86,329 and Cooch Behar at 1,44,916. District administrations have been instructed to ensure that eligible adult members can demand work and receive wage-based employment, not merely obtain cards, the official said. The department has directed the campaign to be run using district-wise Labour Department migrant worker data. The initiative aims to strengthen rural livelihood security and reduce migration for work. ## Indian Opinion Analysis MGNREGA guarantees 100 days of wage employment per rural household per year, but West Bengal has historically had lower card coverage and work demand compared to states like Tamil Nadu. The state's focus on migrant workers, who often move seasonally for construction or brick kiln jobs, addresses a gap where families lose access if they are absent during the annual job card verification cycle. The Labour Department's migrant worker database was built during the pandemic to track reverse migration, and this linkage with MGNREGA is a practical step to formalise informal work. The outcome to watch is how many of the 22 lakh identified actually receive job cards and then successfully demand work through the gram panchayat system. ## Coverage - deccanherald.com Leads with government data and official statement, no opposition or critical framing This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Malda, MGNREGA, Murshidabad, Panchayats and Rural Development Department, West Bengal Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/bengal-drive-to-bring-22-lakh-migrant-workers-under-job-scheme/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/bengal-drive-to-bring-22-lakh-migrant-workers-under-job-scheme/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/