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How is NREGA doing? (200 districts, 2006-7) Jean Dr èze and Christian Oldiges. NREGA: Fundamental Principles. Employment on demand. Legal right. Universal entitlement. Participatory approach. Accountability to PRIs. Full transparency. NREGA: Basic Entitlements.
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How is NREGA doing?(200 districts, 2006-7)Jean Drèze and Christian Oldiges
NREGA: Fundamental Principles • Employment on demand. • Legal right. • Universal entitlement. • Participatory approach. • Accountability to PRIs. • Full transparency.
NREGA: Basic Entitlements • Employment within 15 days of application. • Unemployment allowance. • Work within 5 kilometres. • Minimum wages. • Payment within 15 days. • No gender discrimination. • Basic worksite facilities.
NREGA: Employment Generation, 2006-7 • Total: 90 crore person-days • Per job card: 24 person-days • Per rural household: 17 person-days • Minimum “requirement”:a 200 crore person-days aNAC estimate, 2004.
NREGA Expenditure, 2006-7 • Total: Rs. 8,813 crores • Per district: Rs. 44.06 crores • Estimated requirement for 200 districts: Rs. 20,000 crores • Budget allocation for 2007-8 (330 districts): Rs. 13,000 crores
Number of NREGA works, 2006-7 • Taken up: 8.3 lakh • Completed: 3.8 lakh • In progress: 4.5 lakh • Approximate number of villages in NREGA districts: 2 lakh
NREGA Employment, 2006-7: Person-days per rural household a Except Assam (approximate figure, based on incomplete data).
Share of Disadvantaged Groups in NREGA Employment • Women: 40% • Scheduled Tribes (ST): 36% • Scheduled Castes (SC): 26% • SC/ST Combined: 62%
Share of Women in NREGA Employment • National average: 40% • Highest shares: Tamil Nadu 81% Rajasthan 67% Kerala 66% Andhra Pradesh 55% • Lowest shares: Bihar 17% Uttar Pradesh 17% Himachal Pradesh 12% Jammu & Kashmir 4%
Average Expenditure and Labour Costs • Average Expenditure per Person-Day Rs. 98 • Share of Wages in Total Expenditurea 66% • Average Wage Cost per Person-Daya Rs. 64 aUnskilled labour only.
Average Wage Cost per Person-Day aExcept Assam (approximate figure, based on incomplete data).
CDE-IHD Survey, 2007 • A field survey of NREGA was recently conducted by the Centre for Development Economics (CDE) and the Institute of Human Development (IHD), with students from Delhi University and Jawaharlal Nehru University. • Date: May-June 2007 • Survey Districts: Ranchi (Jharkhand) Surguja (Chhattisgarh) • Number of Gram Panchayats: 23 • Number of worksites: 47
Most families have a job card. Awareness levels have improved. Employment on a massive scale. Minimum wages are being paid. Contractors have disappeared. Most of the works are productive. Corruption levels have gone down. Where there is work, NREGA is a lifeline for the rural poor. Massive progress compared with earlier years! Surguja: Positive Findings
Surguja: Areas of Concern • Work is not “demand-driven”. • Long delays in wage payments. • Shortage of staff at all levels. • Poor worksite facilities (e.g. creches). • Violations of the transparency safeguards. • Corruption persists.
Survey Findings: Application Process Were most labourers at this worksite employed in response to an application for work? Ranchi Surguja Yes 4% 11% No 96% 89%
Survey Findings: Wage Payments Proportion (%) of worksites where: RanchiSurguja Most labourers earned the minimum wage n/a 84 Wages were paid in front of the labourersa 54 79 Wages were paid within 15 days 32 16 Labourers had complaints about wage payments 71 90 a Excluding payments through Banks
Survey Findings: Worksite Facilities Proportion (%) of worksites with the following facilities: Ranchi Surguja Drinking water 64 100 Shade for periods of resta 68 (16) “Medicine kit” 68 59 Crèche 4 11 a Not including natural shade.
Survey Findings:Vigilance Committees Proportion (%) of worksites with: Ranchi Surguja Vigilance committee 89 84 Active vigilance committee 11 21
Survey Findings:Estimated “Leakages” Earlier surveys: Dungarpur, April 2006: (negligible) Garhwa, October 2006: 85% CDE-IHD survey: Ranchi 33% Surgujaa 5% a Gram Panchayat works.
The Future of NREGA: Critical Issues • Activating the work application process. • Implementation of transparency safeguards • Timely wage payments. • Need for a wage policy. • Women’s participation. • Redressal systems!