2.

8
RIGHTS-BASED APPROACH TO RURAL Rural Development
DEVELOPMENT
The UPA govemment realised the political hazards caused by the
economic refoms. So they decided to
pitfalls of these
comesponding publice e s to minimise hetum the tide by implementing
nterventionin the
of
economic hardships This is how
public policy was initiated, which is known as the
rights-based approach to rural development Some of these are hriefly discussed
bclow.
i) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
The first scheme/programme under the
our attention is based on the National rights-based approach, which draws
Rural Employment Guarantee Act
(NREGA), which came into being in 2005S and was finally
renamed as
Mahatma Gandhi NREGA (MGNREGA) in 2009. It is the wage employment
scheme, cnsuring a legal guarantee of 100 days of employment in a financial
year to a rural poor household, whose adult members voluntcer to do unskilled
manual work. It aims at creating durable assets and strengthening the
livelihood resource base of the rural poor. Initially, it was introduced in 200
most backward districts, and then extended to an additional 130 districts, and
finally to all the rural districts by April 2008. The livelihood possibilities are
successtiully delivered by MGNREGA. When a large number of migrant
labourers returned home in the wake of COVID-19. MGNREGA came to their
rescue. In order to cnsure that MGNREGA funds are utilised properly, it wias
the nced of the hour to bring transparency in the cxccution of MGNREGA.
This realisation entailed the process another significant Act in that
direction, which is known as Right to Infomation.
ii) Right to Information
The Right to Information (RTI) Act was enacted in 2005 with an aim of
providing access to records of the govemment to the citizens. As per the Act,
every public authority is required to computerise their records for wide
dissemination, and to proactively publish certain categories of information) It
opens up government's records to public scrutiny. thereby, ensuring openness.
transparency and accountability in the systen I also strengthens the
foundation of grassroots democracy through peoples' participation in local
governance and development activities.
RTI is being used at the grassroots level in development program1nes and
schemes in general, and MGNREGA in particular. During the audit, details of
govermment expenditure on MGNREGA are verificd, assets developed are
assessed and infornation on MGNREGA is shared with village communities.
The audit ends with a public meeting, where the findings of the audit are
shared in the presence of local govermment otficials and politicians (Aiyer &
Samji. 2012). The experience gained from the experiment of jan sunsvas
(public hearings) in Rajasthan is proof that the citizens can no longer he
misled or misutilised(This is a very positive impact of the RTI (Mishra, 2016).)
on of Lece
iii) The Forest
nanee and
Rights Act (FRA), 2006
In the seies of a
enacted to ensurerights-based
ment
appronch, yet another important
the ovnership
Act (FRA), 2006 rights to the Adivasi's. The leginlation w
ecognises the rights of
Forest Righs.
communities the
forest dwellers to forest-dwelling
and other trihal
which these traditional forest
communities were resources on
livelihood, habitation and other dependent lor a variety of needs, includine
empowers traditional forest dwellerssocio-cultural
with
needs) The Act essentially
control over the
resources) The Forest Rights Act is under the Ministry of
forest area and its
the Ministry
of Tribal Affairs and
hange), As
Environment (Now,
per the order of the
Ministry of Environment and
(Climate
responsibility of implementing the ForestMinistries, the
Rights Act,
states were given
2006. The Act protects
the
their rights to access and use the
forest resources "in the manner that
were traditionally accustomed, to they
protect forest dwellers from unlawfulprotect, conserve and manage forests.
evictions and also provides for basic
developnment facilities for the community of forest dwellers to access
facilities of cducation, health, nutrition,
has been in force for over a infrastructure, ctc." Though the Act
decade and a half, several forest communities
have not had their traditional rights registered or
has sparked conflict over the ycars. acknowledged, an issue that
iv) Right to Education
In order to enhance the cducational capability of rural children, a very
significant move was made by enacting the Right To Education (RTE) Act on
4" August, 2009, which deseribes the modalities of the importance of free
and compulsory cducation under Article 21A of the Constitution) With his.
India has moved forward to a rights-bused framework.(Ihe Act ensures
that
cvery child has a right to guaranteed quality clententary educatiop? h
mandates that private schools must ensure that they reserve 25 per cent scals
for children belonging tu disudvantaged groups. It strives for quality with
cquity by banning corporal punishment lo ensurc classrooms free of fear and
anx iety as well as by providing nother tongue education to the exteni
possible
v) National Food Security Act, 2013
For loug, the goveImnent has been addressing the issue of food secuity' al
the lhouschold hrough the Public Disributiou Systein (PDS) and the Tagcied
Public Distribution System Yet he ncnace of poveity has becu persislng
s n his background thal he nght o food, a loug-standuug deand of he
poor and social activisis, was inplemcnted Piesumably, il was
against starv ation and hunger. The cuacuueat of h Nalionul Food shicl0
(NFSA) A, 2013 ou July 5. Sccurty
2013. uaks a paradiguu shift in the approach o
tood scCunity fron welfaue to
rights-based approach The Act legaliy
chliles up lo 75 per cent of the rural
populalion and 50 per ccnt of he utbas
jPopulauon
subsidiscd lovdgrains under largeted Public
Distribuln System About two-hirds of the population, theretore., IS
under thhe Act to recese hughly COVe
subsid1scd fovd grans)