Role of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in Poverty Alleviation in India

Abstract

Poverty reduction and creation of rural assets is one of the major goals of development policy in India since independence. Unemployment breeds poverty, poverty is one of the most critical issues in the country. National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) of India, most progressive legislations enacted since independence guarantying rural employment and right to work as an enforceable legal entitlement in a rural milieu marked by stark inequalities between men and women, created opportunities for gainful socio-economic inclusion of women. In this context, an attempt is made in the present study to analyse the performance of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme (MGNREGS) in India and the role of MGNREGS in poverty alleviation in India. The present paper is based on secondary data. The government has come up with different schemes to eradicate poverty. During the 11th Five Year Plan, United Progressive Alliance Government introduced a number of poverty alleviation programmes and also employment generation programmes. National Employment Guarantee Scheme of 2005 is such kind of a scheme. The trend of the issuance of job cards to the house hold members has been increased every year. It is observed that the government has not provided employment corresponding to the demand employment. We must understand that NREGA cannot be a long-term solution to the unemployment problem of rural India. A comprehensive and a more sustainable solution that creates large-scale self-employment opportunities in the secondary and tertiary sectors in the rural areas, stimulates demand and last but not the least, increases rural productivity still need to be found.