The demand for work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has generally declined from its peak during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020-21, though several states continue to see increasing participation.
According to the latest government data, 5.78 crore families worked under MGNREGS during the 2024-25 fiscal year, excluding West Bengal, where the scheme has been suspended since March 2022. While this figure is 95.85 lakh lower than the peak of 6.74 crore families in 2020-21, the demand remains significantly higher than the pre-Covid levels. In fact, 85 lakh more families availed of the rural job scheme in 2024-25 compared to 2019-20.
Despite the national decline, states like Maharashtra, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Tripura are witnessing a surge in MGNREGS demand. Notably, Maharashtra has experienced a dramatic rise, with 30 lakh families engaged in the scheme in 2024-25, nearly double the 15.37 lakh families in 2019-20. This trend has continued to grow steadily from 16.84 lakh in 2020-21 to 24.46 lakh in 2023-24.
Bharatshet Gogawale, the Minister for Employment Guarantee Scheme in Maharashtra, attributed this surge to the state’s focus on individual works, including the construction of wells for small and marginal farmers and goat sheds under the scheme. The increased participation of tribal families and the state government’s provision of a top-up wage over the 100-day legal guarantee have also contributed to the rise in demand for MGNREGS.
The Union Rural Development Minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, is currently in talks to release additional funds for the states facing high demand under the scheme.
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