A year-end internal assessment of the MGNREGA scheme by the Centre has noted that it has addressed 41 per cent of the unemployment problem in the rural areas while generating income in regions where there were no other source of livelihood.
The report titled "MGNREGA - Roundup of 2014-15 and way ahead for 2015-16 "-- released recently by the Rural Development Ministry also enlists efforts taken by the Modi Government in the last one year to strengthen the rural job scheme. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) enacted in 2005 aims to provide 100 days of work to unskilled poor people living in rural areas.
Quoting various third party evaluation conducted by reputed universities, the report says that the world's largest public employment programme providing jobs to five crore rural households has played a crucial role in sustaining the rural economy.
"One in every three rural households is a worker under the programme which has addressed 41% of the problem of underemployment in the rural areas.
"Studies have shown that income from these works has come when there is no other means of livelihood; and is therefore has smoothened the rural consumption in the lean periods and drought periods. Moreover where implemented properly, it arrested distress migration and provided a safety net for the poor in the lean agricultural season," says the report.
It also points out how the scheme has provided sustainable work to the rural women and also provided risk-resilience to the small/marginal farmers in the face of drought.
By allowing shift towards high-risk high-profitability crops, the programme has considerably raised the incomes of small-holder farmers in the medium term as well as ensured a positive impact on financial inclusion by bringing 9.37 crore rural households into the financial inclusion network.
Another positive impact of the scheme has been creation of several useful assets under the Act. "This includes millions of acres of uncultivable lands brought under cultivation in Andhra Pradesh, afforestation programme in Bihar, wells taken up in Madhya Pradesh/ Jharkhand, environmental stabilisation works in the hilly areas like Sikkim, drought resistance programmes in Rajasthan," as per the report.
Regarding steps initiated to strengthen the scheme during the first year of Modi Government in 2014-15, the report says orders have been issued in August 2014 making measurement of outcomes after execution of work mandatory.
Other is modification of MGNREG Act providing that at least 60 per cent of the works being taken in a district in terms of cost shall be for creation of productive assets directly linked to agriculture and allied activities through development of land, water and trees. This would help bringing `14,580 crore investment into agriculture and allied activities; and with a potential for another `6,000 crore investment before March 2015, the report says.
Another important measure undertaken is allowing road-side tree plantation by the MNREGA workers on all roads with more than one crore trees been planted during the current year, the report notes.