Since independence, various initiatives have been undertaken for promoting livelihoods for women in urban India. However there is the need of a good and efficient team of administrators who will carry out the specific vision and mission of the livelihood initiatives. Thus the term good governance is becoming very popular in recent academic literature and in administration. It is the need of the hour to evaluate livelihood initiatives in the light of Rights Based Approach (RBA).

The present paper explores the functioning of one of the flagship livelihood initiatives taken by the Government of India in the form of the urban livelihood programme, Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana (DAY), in the National Urban Livelihood Mission (NULM).

This paper will thus try to relate the strengths and weaknesses of governance in livelihood programmes in the present pandemic situation due to Covid 19 under the Rights Based Framework.

This paper will apply  the concepts of good governance as included in the Rights Based Approach (RBA),like participation, accountability, transparency, Rule of Law, Creation of social capital, Inclusiveness, gender neutrality etc.

The paper will follow a mixed methods research based on field data in selected municipalities in Purba Bardhhaman district of West Bengal, India where the livelihood programme is presently running successfully.

The paper will significantly contribute to the understanding of the challenges in local governance in administering livelihood programmes and how various factors including local leadership become significant, particularly in the context of the pandemic.