A total of 5,07,919 senior citizens above 60 years have registered as workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Belagavi district. Of these, 30,429 have been employed in the past six months. The number of registered elderly workers has risen by 61,136 compared to last year, indicating a growing trend of senior citizens seeking employment. Alarmingly, even those in their 80s are now turning to manual labour. In the first half of the 2025–26 fiscal year, 457 individuals aged 80 were provided jobs under the scheme.
The scheme ensures employment for all who apply, including those aged between 61 and 80 years, and in some cases, beyond 80. Last year, 4,46,783 senior citizens were registered as labourers across gram panchayats in the district. That figure has now increased to 5,07,919, comprising 4,94,834 workers aged 61–80 and 13,085 above 80. Over the past two years, the number of workers aged above 80 has grown by around 3,000. Gram panchayats allocate work based on each person’s age and physical capacity.
Among the taluks, Hukkeri has recorded the highest number of senior citizens registering as labourers, followed by Athani. In Hukkeri, 55,076 individuals aged 60–80 and 1,602 aged above 80 have registered. In Athani, 52,664 above 60 and 1,647 above 80 have signed up for work. Belagavi taluk has the highest number of citizens aged above 80, with 1,778 registrations, though only 62 have been provided employment so far. Within Belagavi taluk, Ambewadi Gram Panchayat has the highest number of registered senior workers at 1,429, while Balvanti Gram Panchayat has the most workers above 80, with 173 registrations.
The figures highlight the growing dependence of elderly citizens on manual labour for survival, underscoring the socio-economic hardships faced by rural communities in Belagavi.
