About 42 Pct Decline in Self Employment in India: Survey

The impact on the decline due to NREGA can be measured by the NSSO survey on employment, which has stated that wages for rural workers in real terms are more than double of casual workers and was much more than regular wages for salaried employees.

In 1999 to 2000 a rural worker in India was getting 45.58 per day, it increased to 55.03 in 2004-05. After the introduction of NREGA the average daily wage was increased to 101.53 in 2009-10. The 12th plan document recently approved in the National Development Council meeting said, “The decline in self-employed workforce in rural sector is impacted by NREGA programme and other new opportunities in rural sector,” as reported by the Hindustan Times.

The new job opportunities created in the urban area attributes to the drop in the rate of self employment in these areas. The 20 percent increase in the employment rate in the manufacturing sector in first half of the last decade has resulted in the self employment decline by 5 percent in the second half.

Also Read: Indian Women Work 94 Mins More Than Men Every Day: OECD Survey