MGNREGA_SAMEEKSHA

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3 Sustainable Asset Creation Creation of sustainable assets that strengthen the livelihood resource base of rural areas is one of the key objectives of MGNREGA. To provide for inter-state and regional variations, the design of MGNREGA lists a wide range of permissible works. Since the inception of MGNREGA, around 146 lakh works have been undertaken; of these, almost 51 per cent are works related to water (water conservation, flood control, irrigation, drought proofing, renovation of traditional water bodies and micro-irrigation), and over 19 per cent works are related to rural connectivity (see Table 3.1). At such a scale, MGNREGA works have the potential to benefit rural communities by improving irrigation facilities, enhancing land productivity and connecting remote villages to input and output markets. This chapter does a critical review of the available literature on assets created under MGNREGA; their quality and durability, work completion rates, viability of these works (on public lands and private lands), and what uses they are put to. Overall, studies suggest that while many productive assets have been created on the ground owing to good planning and execution at the micro-level, there is need for more focussed implementation with regard to the creation of durable and sustainable assets under MGNREGA. This is also an area where more rigorous research is required. Quality and Durability of Assets When planned and executed well, studies indicate a positive Return on Investment for MGNREGA assets; a study observed a Return on Investment of over 100 per cent in a single year of use. On the other hand, some studies highlight design-specific and technical quality issues which undermine the potential of these works. That said, there are only a few studies that have conducted rigorous scientific analysis on the actual productive performance of these assets. Further, the quality and durability of the assets vary vastly with district/region and cannot easily be generalised at the national level. MGNREGA has faced criticism on the quality and sustainability of the assets created under it. Critics of the Scheme argue that since employment generation is the primary objective of the Act, the
28 MGNREGA Sameeksha Table 3.1 Total Works Taken Up under MGNREGA FY 2006–07 to FY 2011–12* S.No. Type of Works Total Number Ongoing % of Total of Works works Works taken Completed from (In Lakh) up from FY 2006–07 to FY 2006–07 FY 2011–12* to (In Lakh) FY 2011–12* i. Water Conservation and Water Harvesting (e.g. farm ponds, percolation tanks, etc.) 19.5 36.4 25 ii. Flood Control and Protection (e.g. check dams, culverts, etc.) 3.9 5.9 4 iii. Drought Proofing (e.g. afforestation/tree plantation, agro-forestry, etc.) 5.2 13.0 9 iv. Irrigation Canals (macro- and micro-irrigation works, etc.) 5.7 9.5 7 v. Renovation of Traditional Water Bodies (e.g. desilting of tanks, etc.) 6.6 9.8 7 vi. Total Water Conservation and Water-related Works (sum of (i) to (v) above) 40.9 74.7 51 Works on lands of SC/ST/ BPL/ SMF and IAY and Land Reform Beneficiaries 13.0 19.9 14 vii. Land Development (e.g. contour bunds, field bunds, etc.) 13.9 18.8 13 viii. Rural Connectivity (e.g. village roads, etc.) 16.0 28.3 19 ix. Others (e.g. Bharat Nirman Kendras) 2.8 4.6 3 Total Works 86.6 146.3 100 * Provisional Data: At the time of the preparation of the report data entry for States was still open for the year 2011–12. Source: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (official website), http://www.mgnrega.nic.in. works undertaken are labour-intensive, These works tend to be non-durable and have limited use. 1 On the other hand, other scholars suggest that earthen works can also be durable if planned, designed and constructed properly. 2 Three metrics have been used to study the quality, durability and utility of the Scheme’s assets; RoI/cost recovery, 3 beneficiary perception-based surveys, and quality and soundness of technical design. However, these categories are not distinct. For example, beneficiary perceptions (on usage and expected returns) and technical design have often been used to estimate the RoI. Further, since these assets have been created under MGNREGA, perception-based surveys also use parameters related to processes and procedures, such as, participatory planning, timely measurements and wage payment, to make assessments. Return on Investment/Cost Recovery RoI estimates the expected returns on the built asset. Investment on the asset includes the initial cost of the structure. A comprehensive study on RoI related to MGNREGA works across eight districts of Bihar, 1 N. Bassi and D. M. Kumar, ‘NREGA and Rural Water Management in India: Improving Welfare Effects’, Occasional Paper No. 3-0910, Hyderabad: Institute for Resource Analysis and Policy, September 2010. 2 M. Shah, ‘Manual Labour and Growth’, Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 63, no. 51, 20 December 2008. 3 RoI estimates the expected returns on the built asset including the initial cost of the structure.
Page 2 and 3: MGNREGA Sameeksha ‘I will give yo
Page 4 and 5: MGNREGA Sameeksha An Anthology of R
Page 6 and 7: Contents List of Tables, Figures an
Page 8 and 9: Tables, Figures and Boxes Tables A:
Page 10 and 11: Foreword I In his famous talisman,
Page 12: Foreword xi There has been public c
Page 16 and 17: Abbreviations ADS AEO APL APO ATM B
Page 18: Abbreviations xvii RTI SAU SBI SC S
Page 21 and 22: 2 MGNREGA Sameeksha Coverage The Ac
Page 23 and 24: 4 MGNREGA Sameeksha Table A An Over
Page 25 and 26: 6 MGNREGA Sameeksha per capita expe
Page 27 and 28: 8 MGNREGA Sameeksha has had an impa
Page 29 and 30: 10 MGNREGA Sameeksha Figure 1.1 Nom
Page 31 and 32: 12 MGNREGA Sameeksha Line (APL) pop
Page 33 and 34: 14 MGNREGA Sameeksha Box 1.1 MGNREG
Page 35 and 36: 16 MGNREGA Sameeksha Micro-level da
Page 37 and 38: 18 MGNREGA Sameeksha 2 Gender and S
Page 39 and 40: 20 MGNREGA Sameeksha Scheme logisti
Page 41 and 42: 22 MGNREGA Sameeksha male workers.
Page 43 and 44: 24 MGNREGA Sameeksha the importance
Page 45: 26 MGNREGA Sameeksha women need to
Page 49 and 50: 30 MGNREGA Sameeksha the farmers ca
Page 51 and 52: 32 MGNREGA Sameeksha a conceptualis
Page 53 and 54: 34 MGNREGA Sameeksha Work on Privat
Page 55 and 56: 36 MGNREGA Sameeksha Rajasthan, Guj
Page 57 and 58: 38 MGNREGA Sameeksha 4 Environmenta
Page 59 and 60: 40 MGNREGA Sameeksha While effectiv
Page 61 and 62: 42 MGNREGA Sameeksha to a range of
Page 63 and 64: 44 MGNREGA Sameeksha efficiently se
Page 65 and 66: 46 MGNREGA Sameeksha force where mo
Page 67 and 68: Table 5.1 Month-wise Person-days Ge
Page 69 and 70: 50 MGNREGA Sameeksha Increase in Ba
Page 71 and 72: 52 MGNREGA Sameeksha labour, 42 the
Page 73 and 74: 54 MGNREGA Sameeksha 6 Governance a
Page 75 and 76: 56 MGNREGA Sameeksha Panchayati Raj
Page 77 and 78: 58 MGNREGA Sameeksha the year prior
Page 79 and 80: 60 MGNREGA Sameeksha reasons for de
Page 81 and 82: 62 MGNREGA Sameeksha Table 6.2 Stat
Page 83 and 84: 64 MGNREGA Sameeksha Figure 6.1 Mai
Page 85 and 86: 66 MGNREGA Sameeksha states, includ
Page 87 and 88: 68 MGNREGA Sameeksha soil. The cost
Page 89 and 90: 70 MGNREGA Sameeksha A summary of t
Page 91 and 92: 72 MGNREGA Sameeksha employment pro
Page 93 and 94: 74 MGNREGA Sameeksha Table 7.1 Expa
Page 95 and 96: 76 MGNREGA Sameeksha The new Guidel
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78 MGNREGA Sameeksha of MGNREGA, fr
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80 Bibliography Ambasta, P., ‘MGN
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82 Bibliography different regions,
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84 Bibliography Abstract: At the re
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86 Bibliography market. The questio
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88 Bibliography cent) and on non-fo
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90 Bibliography vulnerability. As a
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92 Bibliography Abstract: IIM Shill
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94 Bibliography Jameel Poverty Acti
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98 Bibliography than 50 per cent in
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100 Bibliography This adverse produ
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102 Bibliography Planning Commissio
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104 Bibliography some extent, in sh
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MGNREGA_SAMEEKSHA

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