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India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme: What Do We Really Know about the World’s Largest Workfare Program?

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  • Sukhtankar, Sandip

Abstract

In the ten years since the rollout of India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), there has been much research on its implementation and impact. This paper attempts to synthesize knowledge from the vast array of studies. I present four key takeaways. First, there is large heterogeneity in implementation, with consequences for not only where impact is seen, but also for interpreting what “the scheme” entails. Second, the “Guarantee” in the title is a misnomer, as access is rationed. Third, NREGS seems to have increased rural private sector wages, but has led to worse educational outcomes for older children, with net positive impacts on income and welfare that are debated. Fourth, key questions pertaining to overall impacts on rural productivity remain unanswered. Although serious research on these questions is badly needed, current standards for causal inference and the availability of data will remain high hurdles for those who wish to take on this challenge.

Suggested Citation

  • Sukhtankar, Sandip, 2017. "India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme: What Do We Really Know about the World’s Largest Workfare Program?," India Policy Forum, National Council of Applied Economic Research, vol. 13(1), pages 231-285.
    • Handle: RePEc:nca:ncaerj:v:13:y:2017:i:2017-1:p:231-285
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    File URL: https://www.ncaer.org/publication/india-policy-forum-2016-17
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Sanjiv Kumar & S. Madheswaran & B. P. Vani, 2021. "Response of Poverty Pockets to the Right-based Demand-driven MGNREGA Programme," Review of Development and Change, , vol. 26(1), pages 5-24, June.
    2. C. Justin Cook & Manisha Shah, 2022. "Aggregate Effects from Public Works: Evidence from India," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 104(4), pages 797-806, October.
    3. Farzana Afridi, & Sourav Bhattacharya, & Amrita Dhillon, & Eilon Solan,, 2021. "Electoral Competition, Accountability and Corruption:Theory and Evidence from India," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 569, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    4. Anindya Bhattacharya & Anirban Kar & Alita Nandi, 2023. "Asymmetric networks, clientelism and their impacts: households' access to workfare employment in rural India," Papers 2304.04236, arXiv.org.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    NREGS; MGNREGA; NREGA; Workfare; India; Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme; Rural Wages;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H53 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Government Expenditures and Welfare Programs
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
    • J38 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Public Policy
    • J45 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Public Sector Labor Markets
    • J68 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Public Policy

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