Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social...
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![Page 1: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts
Ratna M. SudarshanInstitute of Social Studies Trust
New Delhi
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 2: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
Objectives
• NREGA data shows varying levels of women’s participation across states
• Objective to understand‘given the context, the underlying opportunities
and constraints, what initiatives could improve women’s levels of participation and/ or the impact of such participation on their well being’
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 3: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
Choosing a sample
• Study the outliers – states with very high and very low participation by women
• Kerala, Himachal• State with high poverty levels and high
participation - Rajasthan• To identify: what works? ‘good practice’ in
terms of desirable wider impacts
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 4: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
Level of women’s participation (as on November 2007)
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 5: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
Methodology of data collection• Choice of state and district based on secondary data• choice of villages based on advice of local officials and
other privileged observers • Methods include field visits to work sites and
interviews with ‘mates’; interviews with all stakeholders (including officials, villagers, women who participate in NREGA and women who have not participated, local NGOs) – to permit triangulation
• Review of district records • Review of any available reports, articles or studies on
the areas being studied
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 6: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
Work completed up to June 2009
• Kerala: meeting with NREGA programme Co-ordinators in Palakkad
• Fieldwork in Malampuzha and Attapady blocks of Palakkad district
• Himachal: meeting with District Commissioner, and other officials at Nahan, Sirmour
• Fieldwork commenced
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 7: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
Key Findings: Kerala
• High participation by women• Wages earned on NREGA worksites at
minimum wage of Rs 125 well above market rate for women (70-80): increase in no of women willing to work + preference for NREGA work over agriculture
• Not attractive for men for whom market wage is over Rs 200; very limited male participation
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Key Findings: Kerala• Management of worksites entrusted to
Kudumbashree (state poverty eradication mission)
• Area Development Supervisor (women) maintain muster rolls, etc. Typically educated, between 32-45 years, attends a minimum of 10 meetings a month.
• State decision to ensure payment of minimum wage – measurement of ‘work completed’ reportedly lenient (contrast with Rajasthan for example, similar to Himachal)
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Key Findings: Kerala
• Payment into bank accounts – takes time, hence daily household needs now being met by men’s earnings; savings in bank; targeted spending;
• Two reactions to shortage of labour for agriculture: creation of NREGS calendar by panchayat; or forcing upward revision of wages/ also some reduction in cultivated area
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 10: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
Key Findings: Kerala
• Who does not participate– Young women with young children (< 30 years)– Tribal areas – Attapady – difficult to mobilise into
groups, distance to site greater, activities not always suitable to area; formation of Kudumbashree adivasi only groups in progress
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Initial findings: Himachal
• High proportion of ‘local’ population own some land/ low demand for manual work
• ‘Migrant but settled’ population seeks manual work but market wages for both men and women > minimum wage of Rs 100
• Demand for NREGA from groups with weak position (age, geographic location, caste/ social group, lack of household support etc)
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Initial findings: Himachal
• Puzzle: other districts in Himachal started with very low participation of women but has gone up in last 3 years; continues to be very low in Sirmour
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Some general observations
• General awareness not enough: women mobilised through Kudumbashree in Kerala; state government/ panchayat leadership in Himachal
• Wider impacts on market wages, supply of women’s labour, savings, intra household allocation of responsibilities, can be observed in varying degrees
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
![Page 14: Examining the NREGA: Women’s Participation and Impacts Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust New Delhi Institute of Social Studies Trust,](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082422/56649dd95503460f94ace073/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
Some general observations
• Choice of works reflects standard choices (roads and connectivity; water bodies and irrigation)
• Clear evidence of ‘strong developmental state’ in both Kerala and Himachal – Himachal did not implement ‘task based measurement’ till April 2009, no system of ‘mates’ (panchayat secretary maintained muster roll)
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Rajasthan
• Previous fieldwork by ISST shows high women’s participation in Rajasthan, but very varying earnings; task based measurement; system of ‘mates’; strong role of civil society groups/ NGOs in advocating for better implementation and higher awareness; more evidence of conflict around worksites
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Future workplan
• Complete fieldwork in Himachal and Rajasthan (by end September)
• Draft report (end October)• Policy workshop (Sept/ October – dates TBA)
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi
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Policy dissemination• Key messages regarding what influences
women’s participation and what are deficits in resulting well being outcomes to be shared locally with NREGA programme officers (informal meetings)
• Summary of state level findings to be presented at seminars as possible (eg. CDS in Trivandrum)
• Policy workshop• Policy brief • Report/ website + papers/ publications as
possible
Institute of Social Studies Trust, New Delhi