Socio-economic impact of mahatma Gandhi national rural employment guarantee act on its beneficiaries in Kakching district of Manipur

Abstract

Developing nations face the dual challenges of unemployment and poverty. India's policymakers have recognized that creating a lot of jobs is necessary to lift the country's hordes of people above poverty line (APL). A study was conducted to know the socio-economic impact of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act on its beneficiaries in Kakching District, Manipur. From each selected block three villages were selected randomly for the study. Total 120 beneficiaries were selected from the six villages for research study. The data was collected from MGNREGA beneficiaries before and after MGNREGA schemeusing structured and standardized interview schedule. The data collected was analyzed using appropriate statistical tools. The study revealed that, 65.0 percent educational change after participation of MGNREGA in medium category, 70.0 percent occupational change after participation of MGNREGA in medium category, 59.2 percent of MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium annual income change category after participation of MGNREGA, 54.2 percent of MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium saving pattern change after participation of MGNREGA, 63.4 percent of MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium expenditure change after participation of MGNREGA, 65.0 percent of MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium material possession change after participation of MGNREGA, 69.2 percent of MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium socio-political participation change after participation of MGNREGA, 73.3 percent of MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium employment generation change after participation of MGNREGA scheme. It was observed that, majority (67.5%) MGNREGA beneficiaries had medium level of overall impact of MGNREGA.