Participation in Rural Labour Work Under Mgnrega: Case of Karnataka

Abstract

The Government of India introduced the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) to provide employment to unskilled labourers, especially those in dire circumstances. MGNREGA is one of the best among the successful social welfare programmes in India. For the study, a total of 30 beneficiaries belonging to one Gram Panchayat, who actively participated in the labour work under MGNREGA during a three-year period from 2014-15,2015-16 and 2016-17, were identified. In addition, 10 MGNREGA job card holders, who either participated for less than 10 days or never participated during the study period, were identified to assess the impact of their non-participation. The study selected a total of 21 GPs. Hence, the total sample size was 840. Majority of the actively participating households owned less than three acres of land, and the remaining were landless. In the case of inactive participation households, a majority possessed more than three acres. Among the activities, the MGNREGA wage income occupied third place whereas the agriculture sector contributed enormously for the inactive households. The average MGNREGA wage income was higher in SC households than other social groups.