Archive for August, 2009
NREGA has been relatively successful in many states in creating a large volume of employment, but critics have pointed out that the quality of projects is often poor. I agree with this assessment and argue that employment tends to be provided since there is a pressure for creating work and paying wages on a timely basis. But there is little pressure for quality from any source, be it administration, social movements or people at large. Unless we get some pressure group for ensuring quality, it is likely that quality of work in NREGA will continue to be poor in the years to come.
Thinking of NREGA from the beautiful Adirondacks
Published by August 30th, 2009 in NREGA. 0 CommentsThe United States is littered with projects created by wage-employment programmes, especially of the new deal era. Parks, forests, soil conservation and all kinds of other works were taken up under the new deal, especially through the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). I wrote this article after a visit to the Adirondacks forest area in New York, which reassured me that wage employment programmes like NREGA can make substantial contribution to our society if we decide to make good use of it.
Jaswant’s Obama-like interview on his Jinnah biography in CNN-IBN
Published by August 17th, 2009 in Current Affairs, India and Podcasts & webcasts. 0 CommentsIn an Obama-like interview Jaswant Singh deals with a complex and polarizing topic like India-Pakistan partition with sensitivity and statesmanship that is rarely seen in Indian politics.
NREGA for the disabled
Published by August 15th, 2009 in Human rights, NREGA, Right to food and Social Policy. 0 CommentsNREGA presents an unprecedented opportunity for disabled persons across India to earn a living and to showcase their talents. But as things stand, NREGA is not designed for disabled people to participate in it, but we can change it all with some tweaking.
Will trained workers in Panchayats improve the quality of NREGA?
Published by August 15th, 2009 in Current Affairs, Governance, NREGA and Social Policy. 3 CommentsMihir Shah argued in a recent article that trained workers should be appointed in each Panchayat if NREGA has to fulfill its promises. While Panchayats need personnel to implement NREGA, I argue that for the purpose of planning it would be better to create nodal agencies that take up planning sound works in a campaign mode.
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