An Innovative Jobs Program in Odisha, India Helped Informal Workers Through COVID-19 and Beyond

The Urban Wage Employment Initiative (UWEI) was launched by Odisha's Housing and Urban Development Department in 2020 to combat unemployment and poverty among urban poor and migrant workers during COVID-19 lockdowns. The program employed 700,000 workers and paid $12 million in wages, focusing on climate-resilient public works such as rainwater harvesting and flood mitigation. By utilizing community organizations as 'alternative service providers' instead of professional contractors, the program ensured benefits remained local and reached marginalized groups. The success of UWEI led to its conversion in February 2021 into a permanent program called MUKTA (Mukhyamantri Karma Tatpara Abhiyan), establishing a precedent for pro-poor urban employment schemes in India.

• The Urban Wage Employment Initiative (UWEI) served as an emergency response to COVID-19 lockdowns, employing 700,000 urban workers and distributing $12 million in wages.
• UWEI focused on building climate-resilient infrastructure across 114 cities in Odisha, including rainwater-harvesting structures, water drain desilting, and flood-mitigation and monsoon preparedness infrastructure.
• The program departed from traditional competitive bidding by using community organizations, such as women's groups and slum dwellers' associations, as "alternative service providers" to ensure job opportunities for marginalized groups.
• In February 2021, the state government institutionalized the initiative by converting UWEI into a permanent program called MUKTA (Mukhyamantri Karma Tatpara Abhiyan).

APA

World Resources Institute (2023). An Innovative Jobs Program in Odisha, India Helped Informal Workers Through COVID-19 and Beyond. https://www.wri.org/insights/odisha-india-jobs-informal-workers

Chicago

World Resources Institute. An Innovative Jobs Program in Odisha, India Helped Informal Workers Through COVID-19 and Beyond. 2023. https://www.wri.org/insights/odisha-india-jobs-informal-workers.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=An Innovative Jobs Program in Odisha, India Helped Informal Workers Through COVID-19 and Beyond |date=3 January 2023 |url=https://www.wri.org/insights/odisha-india-jobs-informal-workers |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2023innovative, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{An Innovative Jobs Program in Odisha, India Helped Informal Workers Through COVID-19 and Beyond}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2023}, month = jan, url = {https://www.wri.org/insights/odisha-india-jobs-informal-workers}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }