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A Short History of MGNREGA: Twenty Years in Ten Charts

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  • Jean Dreze
  • Rahul R.

Abstract

India's Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), enacted in 2005, is an experiment of major significance. Drawing on official statistics, this paper presents a broad-brush retrospective on MGNREGA's first 20 years, focusing inter alia on employment generation, the participation of marginalized groups, real wages, administrative expenditure, and comparative experiences of different Indian states. The program is an important demonstration of the possibility of a legal job guarantee, but its practical achievements are still heavily concentrated in a few states.

Suggested Citation

  • Jean Dreze & Rahul R., 2025. "A Short History of MGNREGA: Twenty Years in Ten Charts," Economics Working Paper Archive wp_1095, Levy Economics Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:lev:wrkpap:wp_1095
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Karthik Muralidharan & Paul Niehaus & Sandip Sukhtankar, 2023. "General Equilibrium Effects of (Improving) Public Employment Programs: Experimental Evidence From India," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 91(4), pages 1261-1295, July.
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