Socioeconomic Impact of Employment Generation Program on Poor Urban Women

With the growing urbanization in India, removal of poverty in cities through specified government programs has assumed importance. The Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY) aims at poverty alleviation through the strategy of encouraging self-employment by building capabilities for undertaking entrepreneurial activities. The strategy of the program is to impart skills through training and provide financial assistance to start micro enterprises (business). The program has focused on women especially. This research paper is an empirical study of this program as implemented in Mumbai city. The impact of this program in Mumbai has been evaluated through fieldwork. 100 beneficiaries were selected from the municipal wards where the program was being implemented. The study has ascertained that on an average the augmented income is in the range of ₹ 1000 to ₹ 3000 per month. 30 percent of the families did not undertake any entrepreneurial activity despite being trained under the program. It was also found that 51 percent of those who started entrepreneurial activity were not formally trained under the program. While nearly one-third of those who started enterprises did so in an area other than the one in which training was taken. This highlights the need to strengthen training for skill development. It was also found that a significant number of beneficiaries had assumed some kind of leadership role in the neighbourhood and improved decision making in the household.