'Anti-poor': Opposition MPs submit amendments to ‘VB-G RAM G Bill 2025’ seeking to replace draft law’s name to MGNREGA

New Delhi: Several Opposition MPs have submitted amendments to the ‘VB-G RAM G Bill 2025’ seeking to replace the draft law’s name back to Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and removing provisions mandating the states to share financial burden of the scheme among others.

The discussion on the ‘Viksit Bharat - Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin): VB-G RAM G Bill’ started in Lok Sabha on Wednesday evening and it is expected to be passed on Thursday afternoon after a reply by Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan during which he is expected to respond on allegations of name change and other issues.

Senior MPs like Sougata Ray (Trinamool Congress), K Radhakrishnan (CPI-M) and Benny Behenan (Congress) have submitted a number of amendments to the Bill, which seeks to replace MGNREGA, make it a supply-driven scheme and make states spend 40 per cent of expenditure on the scheme.

One of the amendments by Radhakrishnan and Ray is for restoring the name of the rural employment guarantee scheme to MGNREGA, amid the Opposition raising strong objections to removing Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the scheme.

Both also ask for 100 per cent funding of the scheme by the central government, amid opposition questioning the provision that mandates states to spend 40 per cent. Ray has demanded increasing the work days in the scheme from 125 days mentioned in the Bill to 150 days while Behenan has demanded 200 days.

With the Bill proposing an expenditure ratio of 60:40 for Centre and states respectively, both Radhakrishnan and Ray have sought omitting these provisions. The CPI(M) and Trinamool MPs also want the provision that the state government has to pay unemployment allowance in case of a person not allocated work to go while putting the onus on the union government for this.

Ray has further demanded the penalty for violating the provisions of the Act be increased from Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000. Amid the Trinamool government in West Bengal accusing the Centre of not releasing MGNREGA funds, one of Ray’s amendments also suggested an amendment that wants the union government to mandatorily release the dues within a month of enactment of the new law.

Behenan has submitted an amendment that seeks an automatic compensation of 0.05 per cent per day payable to the worker in case of delay in wage payment beyond 15 days. He also wants insertion of a provision that the failure of biometric authentication should not result in denial of work or wages and alternative offline verification should be mandatory in such cases.

The wages also should not be less than the minimum wages notified under the Code of Wages 2019 and should be automatically indexed to inflation.

Moving the Bill for passage, Chouhan said it will not only ensure employment but also fulfil Mahatma Gandhi’s dream of making villages self-reliant. He said the Bill will ensure all-around development of villages, make them poverty-free and fuel their growth.

Congress MP Jai Prakash alleged that the Bill by the “pro-rich” government was “anti-poor” and “anti-Dalit” while accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who as Gujarat Chief Minister, of opposing the rural employment guarantee scheme when it was implemented in 2005.

Claiming that the removal of Mahatma Gandhi's name from the Bill was "the biggest crime", he said the new Bill would create fresh financial abilities for the states and deprive 'gram sabhas' of their rights to decide on work to be undertaken under the draft law.