Department of Sociology2024-11-0920230144-559610.1111/spol.128992-s2.0-85147928541https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14288/9821What are the contentious political dynamics of the largest workfare program in the world, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) of India? Combining quantitative analysis with a close reading of government documents and a survey of the existing literature, we suggest that the Indian government's counter-insurgency strategy against the Maoist unrest is a significant dynamic shaping the distribution of MGNREGA benefits. In our empirical analysis, we examine the effect of Maoist incidents on household income due to MGNREGA by merging a nationally representative household survey (Indian Human Development Survey-II) and a Maoist incidents dataset. Controlling for relevant household and district characteristics, we show that higher intensity of violent conflicts is associated with higher MGNREGA benefits. This result is robust to using a variety of alternative specifications and estimation methodologies.Manpower policy, RuralMahatma GandhiGuaranteeJournal Articlehttps://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85147928541&doi=10.1111%2fspol.12899&partnerID=40&md5=3d7b87c3f9cdc538490dee59f4f64815932210500001Q19742