Women Participation in MGNREGA in Uttarakhand State

MGNREGA marks a paradigm shift from all earlier and existing wage employment programmes because it is an act and not just a scheme. Although there is no direct focus on women's empowerment or gender equality under MGNREGA because it is not designed with the objective of promoting gender equality. But the act has benefited women in multiple ways. MGNREGA offers 33% employment to women, guarantees child care facilities at the worksite and provides scope to women to participate in planning and implementation of MGNREGA and in conducting social audit as members of Gram Sabha and Gram Panchayat. Many studies have shown that many development programs that were assumed to benefit everybody really benefited men only. Therefore, it is indeed essential to examine the extent to which beneficiaries are benefited through rise in per capita income by income-generating activities. This research paper discusses the level of women participation in MGNREGA and how the scheme is beneficial for them. This study is based on secondary data.