Taking rights seriously : an impact assessment of the MGNREGA conundrum in west Bengal with evidence from Alipurduar district

Abstract

Dr. BR Ambedkar in his last speech to the constituent assembly had spoken about how India was about to enter into a life of contradictions with political equality but no social or economic equality, which if left unattended might blow up the structure of our political democracy. Jawaharlal Nehru guided by the dominant consensus of the time had argued for planning and a centralized welfare state to be the antidote for resolving these contradictions which resulted in an incorporation of a degree of asymmetric federalism in our Constitution. Thus, the years after independence saw the delivery of welfare through a dual regime of central sector schemes and centrally sponsored schemes (CSS). The CSS empowered with a wide mandate provides the central government to design and fund the programmes even on matters of the State and Concurrent list whereas the implementation of the same was left to the States. However, our constitutional architecture situates the CSS to be ad hoc in nature and entirely based on the assessments of the Union Government of the day despite India moving into a rights-based regime from 2000’s. Since 2004, India had moved towards a right based welfare with the guarantee of legal entitlements but it was operationalized on the ground through centrally sponsored schemes thus creating problems in its implementation which this study aims to explore. This research work aims to delve into the constitutional contours which hinder the perfect operationalization of rights-based welfare with Right to Work in West Bengal as a case study as it had been on the receiving end due to non-disbursal of funds under MGNREGA since December 2021.

The study found out that Article 282 of Constitution of India empowers the Central Government to administer the centrally sponsored schemes based on their needs and assessments which however can be made more predictable and regularized through the policy recommendations made at the end. On the impact of stoppage of funds in West Bengal, it had a disastrous impact on the life and livelihoods of the general populace which has been manifested duly in this dissertation report.