A Study of Women Participation in MGNREGA in Himachal Pradesh

By : S.L Kaushal , Balbir Singh

Page No: 382-391

Abstract
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is becoming a milestone in empowering women. MGNREGA provides a legal guarantee of 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to volunteer household adults by ensuring at least 33% women workers. It has vital potential to check prejudice and disparities might it be economic or gender based. The gamut of the present paper is to explore the reach and impact of MGNREGA on economic empowerment of women in rural India in general and Himachal Pradesh in particular. From the findings, it is clear that in India, the share of women participation in MGNREGA work has increased to 50.24% in 2014-15 as compared to 47.07% in FY 2012-13. Among states, Tamilnadu is leading in the country where women have generated 3086.82 lakh persondays in 2013–14 followed by Andhra Pradesh 1756.56 lakh persondays and Rajasthan 1245.75 lakh persondays. In Himachal Pradesh, the share of women worker has been 58.09% in MGNREGA in 2014–15 and 176.60 lakh persondays generated in 2013-14 which was 118.8 lakh in 2011–12. The data revealed that Mandi district has generated the highest persondays in the last three years followed by district Kangra. In a nutshell, we can say that both at national and state levels, women participation in MGNREGA is increasing with the passage of time and they are sharing financial burden with men in shouldering family responsibilities. However, a need is felt to improve awareness amongst women and timely payments to beneficiaries will add fillip to success of the scheme.

Authors :
S.L. Kaushal : Professor, Himachal Pradesh University Business School, Summerhill, Shimla.
Balbir Singh : Research Scholar (SRF), Himachal Pradesh University Business School, Summerhill, Shimla.