Livelihood Changes Through MGNREGA: A Study in Rural Tamil Nadu (India)

Abstract

The MGNREGA has brought about a paradigm shift both in design and the approach of intervention mechanisms of wage employment programs. The study aim to assess the livelihood changes through MGNREGA on rural households in terms of income, asset creation, migration and its effect on agriculture. The study is largely empirical, based on a primary survey was conducted in the selected districts of Tamil Nadu India viz., Karur, Trichy, and Dindigul. Multi stage random sampling technique was adopted for choosing the samples. A total of 450 workers (both male & female) have been chosen for this study. The rural poor were found to be relatively more inclined to get employed under NREGA. The average number of employment days for scheduled caste households was relatively more than that of backward caste and general caste rural households. NREGA seems to have a positive impact on the labor force participation of rural females. The introduction of NREGA has immensely changed the relationship between workers and farmers reported by 98 percent of farmers in the study area. Demand of more wages is the major principle change of attitude of the workers cited by two third of respondents. The scheme is believed to have a significant impact on migration of the workers to nearby towns/cities. What is required that a long term sustainable implementation of the program and the constructive new initiatives by the Government will determine the future success of the scheme.

Keywords: MGNREGA Income, Expenditure, Migration, Employment, Saving, Determinants, Regression Cost of Cultivation

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