Poverty Reduction through MGNREGA in Himachal Pradesh

By : Balbir Singh , S L Kaushal

Page No: 202-209

Abstract
People are considered poor if their levels of income and consumption fall below a given minimum level necessary to fulfill their basic needs. Poverty reduction aims at improving the quality of life through various government schemes launched from time to time. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 or MNREGA is one such scheme that provides hundred days of guaranteed employment to each household in a financial year. The present paper is an endeavour to study the impact of the scheme on poverty reduction in the Sirmour and Solan districts of the states of Himachal Pradesh. For this study, 400 below poverty line (BPL) MNREGA beneficiaries were selected and data collected with the help of a questionnaire on aspects like food availability, earnings, expenditure patterns, risk management, and savings, among others. Their level of living has improved significantly, and the scheme has been proven to be an important source for their income and survival. The study also revealed that after MNREGA employment, the poor were able to procure food grains from fair price shops and grain shops. The findings also show that expenditure on the education of children, medical facilities, insurance, entertainment, social occasions, etc. has increased in poor households after the implementation of MNREGA.

Authors :
Balbir Singh : Assistant Professor, Department of Management Studies, Sardar Patel University, Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, India
S L Kaushal : Ex Director & Dean, Faculty of Commerce, Management & Tourism, Professor, Himachal Pradesh University Business School, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India
 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.32381/PROD.2023.64.02.9