Shylashri Shankar and Raghav Gaiha: Battling corruption: Has NREGA reached India’s rural poor?

Abstract

The popular workfare scheme, under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), which was launched in 2005, has been branded as a political gimmick by some while others swear by the noble intent that it was based on—that of giving employment of 100 days to the rural poor. The authors of the book being reviewed here, titled Battling Corruption: Has NREGA Reached India’s Rural Poor? have taken up the bold task of evaluating the performance of this scheme by examining how the successful implementation of such a scheme can best be ensured. Any scheme or project needs to be evaluated against its stated objectives. The objectives of NREGA are: (a) to ensure that rural households receive a minimum level of income in a cost-effective manner without encouraging them to become dependent on public support; and (b) to assist households that slip or are likely to slip below this minimum income level while preserving the incentives that would enable individuals to make the choices which would help them to earn more than the minimum income. NREGA guarantees a minimum of 100 days of employment to rural households every year. It is a targeted programme wherein the beneficiaries are self-selected and the incentives ensure that only the absolutely poor individuals select this scheme. The fundamental question that the book addresses is: What kind of mechanisms and actions (of the government, of societies and of beneficiaries) would enhance the efficacy of a scheme like NREGA? The authors set out to measure the effectiveness of formal and informal mechanisms that have either facilitated or prevented the scheme from reaching the end beneficiary. They evaluate the effectiveness of these mechanisms using the ‘empowerment framework’ (outlined by Narayan and Petesch