The Role of the MGNREGS in Providing Employment Opportunities to the SCs and The STs:A Cross-State Analysis

Poverty and unemployment are relatively higher among the Scheduled Casts (SCs) and the Scheduled Tribes (STs) than that in other communities in India, especially in rural areas. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005, was introduced in India to create employment opportunities for the rural people. The present study measures the performance of the states in spreading the benefits of the scheme among the SCs and the STs of the rural areas. Ranks have been assigned to the states based on their performance as measured by the four selected parameters. Inequality among the states in carrying out the scheme has also been measured. Further, correlations between performance scores of the states and SC/ST poverty rates of the states, and performance scores of the states and SC/ ST literacy rates of the states have been computed, respectively.