The SGRY was launched in September 2001, by merging the ongoing Schemes of Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana (JGSY) and Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS).

The objective of the programme is to provide additional wage employment in the rural areas as also food security, along with the creation of durable community, social and economic infrastructure in rural areas.

The SGRY is open to all rural poor who are in need of wage employment and desire to do manual and unskilled work in and around the village/habitat. The Scheme is implemented through Panchyati Raj Institutions.

The scheme envisages generation of 100 crore man-days of employment in a year. The cost of each component of the programme is shared by the Centre and States in the ratio of 75:25. During the year 2003-04 an amount of Rs. 4,121 crore as cash component and 49.97 lakh tones of food grain were released to the States/UTs and 76.45 crore man-days (Provisional) have been generated as reported by the States/UTs. Under the Special Component of the SGRY, 65.84 lakh tonnes of foodgrain have been released to 12 calamity affected States during 2003-04.