Shimla: In a move aimed at liberalising the inclusion criteria for families living below the poverty line, the Himachal Pradesh rural development department has announced an amendment to the BPL guidelines.The revised provisions, as notified last month, allow families to be considered for the BPL list if all adult members completed at least 50 days of work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) during the previous financial year.The amendment will be applied to the ongoing selection process. Applications received from Phase-I to Phase-IV, along with fresh applications submitted by the March 12 deadline, will be evaluated under the updated criteria, said an official spokesperson.After verification, the block level committee will finalise and publish the Phase-V BPL list by March 15. The authorities clarified that decisions taken during the first four phases would remain unchanged and valid. Other procedures will continue as per the March 19, 2025, guidelines. MSID:: 129215537 413 |

