Forget Gandhi? VB-G RAM G Bill to Replace MGNREGA, Opposition Slams the Move

The government on Monday introduced the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025 , proposing to repeal the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005 , and replace it with a new rural employment framework. The move has triggered political controversy over both the policy redesign and the removal of Mahatma Gandhi’s name from one of India’s most recognisable welfare laws.

Reacting to the move, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said in a social media post that the controversy over renaming MGNREGA in the government’s proposed VB-G RAM G Bill was unfortunate. He said the concepts of Gram Swaraj and Ram Rajya were never competing forces but twin pillars of Mahatma Gandhi’s consciousness , and that replacing the Mahatma’s name in a scheme meant for the rural poor ignored this philosophical symbiosis. “His final breath was a testament to ‘Ram’; let us not dishonour his legacy by creating a division where none existed,” Tharoor said.

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra

criticised the renaming, pointing to the administrative costs involved and questioning the intent behind removing Gandhi’s name from a flagship rural welfare scheme. Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien termed the move “an insult to Mahatma Gandhi.”

MGNREGA, enacted during the UPA government led by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh , with Congress leader Sonia Gandhi playing a key role in its conception , has long been seen as a cornerstone of rights-based welfare policy. Opposition leaders argue that replacing it with the newly named VB-G RAM G framework also carries symbolic political significance, potentially distancing the programme from its historical identity and authorship.

The proposed law officially titled the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) and referred to as the VB-G RAM G Bill, 2025 has been listed in the Lok Sabha’s supplementary list of business and seeks to align rural employment policy with the government’s long-term vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 .

Under the Bill, the government proposes a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment per financial year for every rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work, an increase from the 100 days guaranteed under MGNREGA. However, despite the higher ceiling, the proposed legislation marks a significant departure from MGNREGA’s rights-based, demand-driven framework, under which households could demand work at any time and were entitled to an unemployment allowance if work was not provided. The new Bill instead introduces a planned employment model, including provisions for seasonal pauses during peak agricultural periods, raising concerns that the additional workdays may not be guaranteed in practice.

A key change relates to the Centre–State funding structure . Under MGNREGA, the Centre bears 100 per cent of the cost of unskilled labour wages , along with the entire administrative expenditure, reducing the fiscal burden on states. Under the proposed VB-G RAM G framework, the scheme will operate as a centrally sponsored programme with cost-sharing, with funding expected to follow a 60:40 split between the Centre and states for most states, a 90:10 split for North-Eastern and Himalayan states , and full central funding for Union Territories without legislatures.

The Bill also introduces normative state-wise allocations , under which the Centre will approve labour budgets for each state. Any expenditure beyond these approved limits will have to be borne by the respective state governments, increasing the role of state-level fiscal capacity and administrative intent in determining how much work is actually provided.

The Bill has been circulated among Lok Sabha members and is expected to be taken up during the ongoing Winter Session of Parliament , which concludes on December 19 .