Working Paper: 504

Social Capital and Tapping Community-Based
Organisation’s Convergence Potential with MGNREGA:
A Micro Study in Karnataka

Sanjiv Kumar
S Madheswaran

 

Abstract

Despite MGNREGA being hard work and right-based universal programme, where any needy household could self-select themselves, many poor households have failed to access the programme, and many not so poor households are accessing it. It is widely believed that awareness, Social Capital and involvement of CBOs are partly responsible for the differential access exhibited by certain households across states. Kerala’s Kudumbasree represented a successful SHG model, whereas Raichur’s GRAKOSS represented a successful Trade Union of agricultural workers who could harness the potential of networks and facilitated access and inclusion. This study explored the potential of SHGs, TUs and Cooperative-Societies in leveraging the benefits of various development programmes like MGNREGA. The study tries to explore the strength, weakness; opportunity and threats (SWOT) in the context of the above organisations to find policy lessons and to explore ways forward. The study tries to identify, through case study and ethnographic evidence, various elements of Social Capital existing in several grassroots organisations which makes them an effective forum for development convergence. Perspectives of various stakeholders and primary data from a micro-study in Karnataka have been used to evaluate comparative suitability of those organisations for convergence.

 

Working Papers