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rom SGSY to NRLM: How does this reform reshape India’s rural economy
India's National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) is a poverty alleviation programme run by the Ministry of Rural Development that aims to promote self-employment and organize the rural poor. Such a program began in 1999 when the Ministry of Rural Development reorganized the Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP) and launched the Golden Self-Sufficiency Scheme (SGSY), which focused on enhancing the self-employment capabilities of the rural poor. After many years of continuous operation, SGSY was reshaped in 2011 to form NRLM with the aim of filling the gaps in the SGSY program. The launch of this new program marks a new chapter in the reshaping of India's rural economy.
The programme, launched with a budget of USD 5.1 billion, is a flagship programme of the Ministry of Rural Development and one of the world's foremost initiatives to boost the livelihoods of the poor.
NRLM is backed by the World Bank, which has provided a $1 billion credit line. On September 25, 2015, the program was replaced by the Dean Diali Antovda Program, but its core concepts and structure remain important in significantly improving the rural economy.
Background
The basic concept of NRLM is to set up Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and help them to start entrepreneurial activities. However, early SHG organizations faced multiple challenges, which led to their relative failure. This raises the question of how to enable new programs to overcome the shortcomings of old programs and thus improve the quality of life of the poor.
Methodology
In order to build, support and maintain the livelihoods of the poor, NRLM aims to tap the potential of these groups and provide them with information, knowledge, skills, tools, finance and collective capabilities to enable them to interact effectively with the outside world. . The program is based on three main pillars:
- Strengthen and expand existing livelihood options for the poor;
- Build skills for out-of-market job opportunities;
- To nurture self-employed individuals and entrepreneurs.
Specialized support structures are designed to build and strengthen institutional platforms of the poor that are able to provide a range of livelihood services to their members across the value chain of key industries, ultimately promoting their self-sufficiency.
Through the clustering actions of their institutions, the poor reduce their respective transaction costs, making their livelihoods more viable, thereby accelerating their process of escaping poverty.
The implementation of NRLM will be task-oriented, which will: 1. shift from the current quota allocation strategy to a demand-driven strategy, where states can formulate livelihood-based poverty reduction action plans according to their own conditions; 2. focus on Focus on goals, results and time-bound delivery; 3. Continuous capacity building, providing necessary skills training and linkages to livelihood opportunities; 4. Monitoring progress against poverty outcomes.
CriticismAlthough NRLM is one of the major programmes run by the Ministry of Rural Development, it is also considered by some to have serious shortcomings. The famous scholar Malcolm Harper pointed out three problems from the SHG group:
- Building a group takes a lot of time, which is often a challenge for poor women.
- Groups often exclude individuals who pursue independent entrepreneurship, which could potentially start new businesses and create more jobs.
- Men generally perform poorly in group collaboration and are more risk-taking, but when they succeed they often create more jobs than women.
The SHG program has achieved good results in Andhra Pradesh (Indira Kranti Pathaam) and Kerala (Kudumbashree), but the results in other states may not be as expected, which makes it difficult to replicate the program on a national scale. Facing difficulties.
NRLM demonstrates India's efforts in eradicating rural poverty and, to some extent, provides a model for other countries to learn from. However, it is thought-provoking to wonder whether such a plan can truly adapt and adjust to the needs of different regions and groups over time.
