The Political Project of the MGNREGA

Politics and the Right to Work: India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act by Rob Jenkins and James Manor presents a first-rate analysis of the politics of formation and implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA). The MGNREGA legally entitles all rural households of the country to a minimum of 100 days of manual labour every year at a notified wage rate. Workers are entitled to demand work as per their requirement. The administration is duty-bound to allot work within 15 days. If it fails to do so, it is required to pay an unemployment allowance. Workers are also entitled to timely payment of wages and compensation in the case of delays. Their other entitlements include worksite facilities, timely redress of grievances, and oversight of programme implementation. 

The book draws on primary data collected through field surveys in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan from 2008 to 2010 and interviews which continued in the subsequent years. Quantitative data is obtained from various government sources and independent studies. A wide range of other secondary sources also inform the book.