For 40-year-old Sivagami Vellayan of in Karumanthangudi village in Tamil Nadu’s Sivagangai district, working at the coconut husk crushing factory for six days a week was not enough. She earned ₹200 a day that was barely enough to meet her needs. To add to that, the job was seasonal and not available during winters and monsoon. While she cultivated paddy in her 1.5-acre land, her alternative was MGNREGA, which assured 100 days of work a year at ₹224 a day.