HPAS/Allied Mains 2022 Answer Writing Challenge Day 223: Model Answer

Question: Explain the role of MGNREGS as an instrument for poverty eradication. (4 marks/ 60 words)

Answer:

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) Scheme was enacted to provide an employment guarantee of 100 days of work to rural unskilled labor within fifteen days of registration. It has been considered as the largest anti-poverty programme in the world.

It provided an alternative source of livelihood which have helped in reducing migration, restricting child labour, alleviating poverty and making village self-sustaining through productive assets creation such as road construction, cleaning up of water tanks, soil and water conservation work, etc.

As per a NSSO report, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) have accounted for 51 per cent of the total person-days generated.

According to a report released by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) and the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), the programme has reduced poverty overall by up to 32 per cent and prevented 14 million people from falling into poverty.

It has improved the purchasing power of rural people, primarily semi or unskilled workers, to people living below the poverty line in rural India.

It has empowered the women by providing them employment opportunities that led to improvement in women’s ability to make independent decisions about their health.

Children from MGNREGS households were likely to obtain higher levels of educational attainment than their non-MGNREGS peers. Thus, helps in getting out of poverty trap.

Thus, MGNREGA is considered as a “silver bullet” for eradicating rural poverty and unemployment, by way of generating demand for productive labour force in villages.