MNREGA: How the act helps tribal people face climate change

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005, which was later renamed to Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) is a labour law passed to ensure employment for the rural population. The act provides 100 days of guaranteed wages to an unskilled manual labourer, helping them cope with the unemployment. Now, the Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal, College of Arts and Science, Qatar University, Qatar and Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) have assessed the effectiveness of the act in helping Tribal people. Known to be one of the most vulnerable groups in the world to climate change, due to their dependence on agriculture and natural support systems, Tribal population has borne the brunt of a changing climate. MNREGA, the team show, has helped them with water availability, diversification of crop yield and increasing the yield, thus helping the rural populations face the hardships of a changing climate and world.