MGNREGA

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is an initiative aimed at reducing poverty and providing livelihood/job security to rural communities. In 2005, the program was introduced, it guarantees 100 days of wage employment per year for adults willing to undertake unskilled work. The implementation of MGNREGA is overseen by the Ministry of Rural Development, and Gram Panchayats have administrative responsibilities at the district level. The key features of MGNREGA include the right of workers to apply for employment, receive a Job Card, and choose the time and duration of their work. The program also allows for sharing employment among different household members and provides an unemployment allowance if work is not provided within 15 days. MGNREGA emphasises transparency, accountability, and the inclusion of women by reserving 1/3rd of all employment for them. MGNREGA plays a significant role in addressing unemployment, supporting rural development, and creating community assets.

The issue of unemployment is a significant concern in countries like India, affecting both policymakers and the general population, especially the poor and underprivileged. This problem not only jeopardises economic and political stability but is also linked to various underdevelopment issues such as poverty and hunger. MGNREGA was introduced to tackle these challenges.

It was issues by an Act of Parliament in 2005 and the Scheme began on 02.02.2006, covering 200 poorest districts in India. In 2007-08 it was expanded to 130 districts. In the years 2011-12 the programme had a budget allocation of about Rs. 40,000 Crores and for the years 2023-24 the budget allocation was Rs. 60,000 Crores. The MGNREGA programme currently is a nationwide programme and serves as a vital support for millions of impoverished rural residents.

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (“MGNREGA”) gives the right to work to people in rural areas. It tackles poverty by providing dignified livelihood to people. It is a social welfare measure which helps create durable assets for the public like roads, wells, schools, canals etc. It is helping India inch towards the sustainable development goals: SDG1- no poverty, SDG 2- Zero Hunger, SDG 5- Gender Equality, SDG 8 Decent Work & Economic Growth and SDG 10 reduced inequalities.

• Purpose: To ensure the right to work for people and create durable assets for the community.
• Unskilled Work: Offering unskilled manual labour opportunities through labour-intensive and productive public works projects. Labor-intensive works are defined as those with a 60:40 ratio of unskilled to skilled labour and material costs.
• Guarantee of Work: If they don't get work within 15 days, they can receive an unemployment allowance. Each household can get employment for up to 120 days per year, and this can be shared among different adults in the same household. The work should be provided within 5 km, and if it's farther, extra wages will be paid.
• Right Based Entitlement: The Act gives a Government guarantee and it is not a scheme which can be withdrawn by the government.
• Worker’s Rights: To apply for a job, get a Job Card, and choose the time and duration of their employment. They are entitled to NREGA wages which are fixed by the Central Government.
• State Responsibility: The program encourages states to provide employment by covering ninety percent of the employment cost. States receive both incentives and disincentives in the scheme.
• Transparency: States need to submit reports, undergo financial and physical audits, and take action based on audit findings. There are vigilance and monitoring committees, and information technology is used for monitoring. Technical Resource Support Groups are recommended at different levels.
• Women Accomodated: MGNREGA reserves 1/3rd of all employment for women, who also receive wages equal to men. This empowers women, and there are provisions for child care at worksites.
• Centre- State Funding Split: Most of the funding comes from the Central government. It covers wages for unskilled workers, three-fourths of material costs (including wages for skilled workers), while states pay the unemployment allowance, one-fourth of material costs, and some administrative expenses.
• Oversight and Functioning: the implementation of the programme is overseen by the Ministry of Rural Development along with the State Government. On the District level administration responsibility lies with the respective Gram panchayats.
• Benefits: The programme has served as a robust social safety net to the vulnerable of the Society, during periods of employment scarcity. It has also contributed to the community asset creation, soil conservation, water harvesting, afforestation, land development, constructing of roads, percolation tanks, and contour bunding.
• Projects: Projects are categorised into 10 groups such as Watershed, Irrigation, Flood Management, Agricultural and Livestock-related activities, Fisheries, Coastal area projects, and Rural Drinking Water and Sanitation projects. To determine the priority of these projects meetings of the Gram Sabha and the Ward Sabha are held and the priority is decided in the meetings.

Social Audit happens when a program or scheme is put through examination with the active involvement of people, comparing official records with what’s really happening on the ground. It is a powerful tool for bringing about social change, involving the community and holding the government accountable.

• Section 17 of the MGNREGA: It mandates that all works done under the program must undergo a social audit. This involves consulting various stakeholders like beneficiaries, community members and government officials and checking the information against documentary and physical evidence.
• They are different from Financial Audit, which looks at financial documents to understand an organisation's profit, losses and financial stability.
• Significance of Social Audits:
  1. Prevention of Corruption: Prevent misuse of financial resources by making the transaction and expenditures subject to public scrutiny
  2. Empowers Communities: By giving them a voice in the decision-making process.
  3. Improves the quality of Public services: by being an instrument/tool for the identification of weakness and gaps in public programs

1. Funding Issues:
   1. Funds released to state governments are delayed or insufficient.
   2. Caste Based Payments are being released which creates distress on ground as while around 40% SC/ST workers were paid, only 25% general category workers received their pay.
2. Centre- State Disputes: Some state governments have not been paid due to compliance issues like West Bengal.
3. Delays: Delay and leakages in completion of projects. Sometimes projects are not sanctioned in time leading to no available work for the workers.
4. Accountability Deficit: A lot of works are incomplete and there is no regular audit/ inspection to check their status. Their quality is also sub-par. The Comptroller and Auditor General reported in 2011 that only 51% gram panchayats completed social audits in the country.
5. Inadequate Wages: The wages sanctioned are not enough to sustain the household and in some states the NREGA wages are lower than the Minimum Wages set by each state government. This is because the Centre uses Consumer Price Index (Agricultural Labour) to index its wages and it is often an inadequate measure of inflation. Women are earning 20% less than men.
6. Corruption: People are able to create fake job cards to syphon money out of the scheme.
7. PRI Capacity Building: The panchayati raj institutions need to be trained to effectively implement and monitor the scheme and ensure its timely progress.

• Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Kaushalya Yojana: Government’s skill development programme under Ministry of Rural Development under the National Rural Livelihood Mission. It is a demand driven programme which gives skill training and places individuals in jobs. Targeting youth between the ages of 15 to 35.
• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0: By Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) to offer skill training courses to youth.
• Atmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping (ASEEM): Portal to connect skilled people with available jobs. It is also run by MSDE.
• Kaushal Acharya Awards: MSDE launched it to felicitate skill trainers who have done an impactful job.
• Skill India Mission: Is the flagship programme and an umbrella scheme for skilling programmes by MSDE to make the youth of India employable with training.
• Rozgar mela: Job festivals for employers and job seekers to meet each other is conducted by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras (PMKK): Model training centres by MSDE to provide vocational training.
• India International Skill Centres (IISCs): Spread across India in partnership with NSDC to skill youth to meet international standards and attain global mobility.
• Advanced Vocational Training Scheme (AVTS): Vocational training to high school students by giving them diplomas.
• Apprenticeship Training under the Apprentices Act, 1961
• Pradhan Mantri ‘YUVA’ Yojana: Yuva Udyamita Vikas Abhiyan by MSDE provides entrepreneurship and skill training
• Skill Loan Scheme: Bank loans are provided for skill development courses which will give out diplomas/ degrees.
• SANKALP (Skills Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion): Scheme by MSDE in collaboration with World Bank to create institutions at national and state level where skill trainers and testers will train the disadvantaged sections of society.
• Skill Hub Initiative (SHI): To integrate vocational education with general studies under the National Education Policy, 2020 by MSDE.

The Indian government has been actively working to improve employment-related programs through new initiatives. To enhance the effectiveness of MGNREGA, measures have been implemented, including increased budget allocation to meet program goals. Technology is being used to help counter the leakage with JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Bank + Aadhar + Mobile Phone). With this, payments have been linked to Aadhar with no scope for diversion ensuring timely payments to intended beneficiaries. NREGAsoft application is being used to manage the governance of this scheme.

These measures aim to ensure greater transparency and accountability in the program. Additionally, the Direct Beneficiary Transfer (DBT) scheme has helped reduce the likelihood of corruption in labour payments. Geo Tagging of the created assets is being done to verify their existence. The program not only improves the livelihood security of rural communities by providing wage incomes but also contributes to the development of community assets and infrastructure in the countryside.

MGNREGA supports unskilled work. As India aims to become a $5 trillion economy, there is more that needs to be done by skilling our youth in the age of AI. This is reflected in the Indian Government’s Skill India Mission under which skilling is done by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE).