1. Ratna M. Sudarshan For presentation at IAFFE July 12-14, 2013

2.  Current approach to social protection  Home based workers – recent trends  Implications for social protection policy

3.  Constitutional Commitments  Social Protection Floor  Large number of schemes, wide variations across states, overall coverage very low (NCEUS- 5-6 %)

5.  Young population – potential demographic dividend  Over 90 % of the working population informal

6.  National Social Assistance Programme [NSAP] (pensions for those over 60, widows, persons with disability, specified groups in extreme need); proposed to be developed into a Comprehensive National Social Assistance Programme  Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act [MGNREGA] (public works guarantee in rural areas, 100 days per year for each household seeking work with remuneration at minimum wage for rural unskilled labour)  Public Distribution System [PDS], Mid Day Meals in school [MDM] (the PDS enables foodgrains at subsidised prices), all of which would be incorporated within the proposed Food Security Bill  National Rural Health Mission [NRHM], Integrated Child Development Services [ICDS], Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana [RSBY] (health infrastructure and health insurance)

12.  ‘Reconstruction of livelihoods' is a valid and achievable goal for social protection policy to embrace  Resilience framework offers useful insights in this regard – address ‘adaptive capacity’ as well as ‘absorptive capacity’

13.  Diversity of local economy  Child care  Skills and locally available employment  The value of the resilience framework in this context is to emphasize the responsibility of the State to make investments that will enable individuals and communities to be better able to adapt to shocks, and successfully reconstruct livelihoods that have been lost.