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May day is just around the corner. As a workers group with primarily rural women members, we celebrate May day every year – sometimes at the panchayat level, sometimes at the district level and sometimes at state-level events.

Our members make NREGA work by forming their own groups and demanding the right to work, putting forward women “mates” who record attendance both online and offline. They work according to measurement and demand full wages. They gather their collective courage to form a united front, supporting each other through every struggle. 

But this year, as we deliberate on our slogans for May day, our hearts are heavy. A global climate of war has left human lives incredibly vulnerable. Labour struggles are being crushed everywhere and anti-worker laws are being imposed without discussion or consensus. There is a total lack of sensitivity within the system. 

Many sathis remain locked in jails or confined to their homes, while the hard-won victories of labour organisations are being rolled back. Swallowing their despair, workers must now brace themselves for the long and tough fight ahead to establish their rights.

These workers lost 233 work days to NMMS app. Photo: Author provided.

This year, the government hasn’t increased NREGA wages by a single rupee. The program had already been systematically weakened out under the guise of budgetary constraints and technological........

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