Modi govt to rename MGNREGA as Viksit Bharat -G RAM G; what the proposed bill says? What Cong said?
The Modi government is set to abolish the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and introduce a new rural employment law. It has been listed for discussion in the current winter session of Parliament.
A copy of the bill was circulated among Lok Sabha MPs on Monday. It is titled the ‘Viksit Bharat - Guarantee for Employment and Livelihood Mission (Rural) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025’.
The new bill states that its objective is to create a new framework for rural development in line with the national vision of ‘Viksit Bharat 2047’. The number of workdays will be increased from 100 to 125 days.
According to the objectives outlined in the bill, MGNREGA has provided employment to rural families over the past 20 years, but in view of the socio-economic changes in villages, it is necessary to strengthen it further.
Under the new law, every rural household willing to do unskilled work will receive 125 days of paid employment annually. The aim is to achieve the holistic development of villages in line with the goals of Viksit Bharat 2047.
Cong opposes govt's decision
The Congress party has opposed the government's decision. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi questioned why Mahatma Gandhi's name was being removed.
Earlier, on December 12, it was reported that the Union Cabinet had renamed MGNREGA as the Pujya Bapu Rural Employment Scheme. However, no official notification from the government had been released.
When the news of renaming MGNREGA surfaced, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi from Wayanad said that she did not understand the logic behind the decision to change the name of the MGNREGA scheme. She said it leads to unnecessary expenditure.
She said, "I don't understand what the mentality behind this is. First of all, it's Mahatma Gandhi's name, and when it's changed, government resources are again spent on it. From offices to stationery, everything has to be renamed, so it's a big, expensive process. So what's the point of doing this?"