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Abstract

Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee ACT was a revolutionary intervention established on rights-based approach to employment. Over the course of last 13 years, MNREGA has generated innumerable jobs across the country and various researches have corroborated the magnanimous change it bought about in the rural employment scenario. Although the spillover effect of the implementation of this scheme on the labor market outside MNREGS market has been significant, it has received very little attention and has scantly been studied or highlighted in any body of literature. This paper makes an attempt to analyze the impact of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) on the labor market outside MGNREGS, with reference to the Taluka of Iritty, Kannur in the state of Kerala in India. Findings project that the MGNREGS has positively benefited the labors but has had an adverse impact on the labor market in terms of Labor Unavailability, Demand for Higher Wages, Socio-economic perception towards Work and hence Labor Unwillingness. Hence it is suggested that the Government studies the pros and cons of different propositions claimed to benefit the public, keeping in mind different cultural set-ups, socio-economic perspectives and the interplay of these factors which affect different geographical locations differently. Preliminary studies should have been robust enough to predict changes in labor market outcomes following implementation of the scheme in different states of the country and the government should have prepared and proceeded in a way to minimize or mitigate any adverse impact created in the labor market dynamics, without causing any adverse impact on any other section of the society.

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