Context:
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India’s well-known MGNREGS (2005) is often seen as the first major employment guarantee program.
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However, the roots of such schemes go much deeper, stretching back to famine relief public works in pre-colonial India and pioneering state experiments like Maharashtra’s Employment Guarantee Scheme (EGS).
Key Highlights:
Historical Origins: Famine Relief Through Public Works
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During the severe famine of the 1780s, Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula initiated the construction of the Bara Imambara in Lucknow.
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This project became an early example of the idea that the state must provide work instead of charity during distress.
Post-Independence Innovation: Maharashtra’s Employment Guarantee Model
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In the mid-1960s, Gandhian leader Vitthal Sakharam Page launched an employment program in Tasgaon.
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This experiment evolved into Maharashtra’s Employment Guarantee Scheme (EGS) in 1969, proving that job guarantees could work even in drought-prone regions.
Legal Recognition of Employment as State Obligation
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Maharashtra passed the Employment Guarantee Act (1978), formally recognizing employment as a public responsibility.
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This marked a major step in India’s social protection history.
Key Features of the Maharashtra EGS
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Work was offered at below-market wages, ensuring only the genuinely unemployed participated.
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Equal wages were paid to women and men, a progressive measure for rural labor markets.
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Works included:
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Land leveling
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Digging wells
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Percolation tanks
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Soil conservation
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Economic and Social Impact
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Reduced distress migration during droughts.
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Created durable local rural assets.
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Set a wage floor, reducing dependence of laborers on landlords and shifting local power relations.
Financing Innovation: Profession Tax
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When the Centre initially denied famine relief assistance, Page proposed funding through a dedicated tax on urban salaried workers.
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This led to the profession tax, earmarked for EGS.
From State Model to National Scheme: MGNREGS
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The MGNREGS (2005) expanded the Maharashtrian model nationwide.
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It functions as a form of unemployment insurance and reflects the state’s role as an employer of last resort.
Relevant Prelims Points:
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MGNREGS: National program guaranteeing wage employment.
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EGS (Maharashtra): First major state-level employment guarantee experiment.
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Bara Imambara: Example of famine-time public works in pre-colonial India.
Issue + Causes
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Chronic rural distress due to droughts, famines, and unemployment.
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Need for state intervention through public works.
Benefits
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Income security
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Asset creation
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Reduced migration
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Women’s workforce participation
Challenges
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Limited share in total rural employment
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Fiscal and administrative constraints
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Implementation inefficiencies
Relevant Mains Points:
Conceptual Clarity
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Social Protection: Policies ensuring economic security for vulnerable groups.
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Employment guarantee as a proxy for unemployment insurance in rural India.
Polity & Governance Linkages
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Rooted in the Directive Principles emphasizing welfare responsibility of the state.
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Shows evolution of India’s welfare state from famine works to rights-based entitlements.
Way Forward
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Strengthen MGNREGS implementation and timely wage payments.
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Expand asset quality and climate-resilient works.
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Explore integration with broader unemployment insurance frameworks.
UPSC Relevance (GS-wise):
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GS 1 (History/Post-Independence): Evolution of famine relief and welfare schemes
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GS 2 (Polity): Rights-based legislation, state obligations
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GS 3 (Economy): Employment generation, rural distress mitigation
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Prelims: EGS, MGNREGS, social protection measures