VB-G RAM-G replaces MGNREGA with President’s assent; Gazette notification issued

President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday gave her assent to the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin VBG RAM G Bill replacing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act MGNREGA and providing for 125 days of wage employment for rural workers news agency PTI reported Following the presidential approval the Bill is now the VBG RAM G Act 2025 as notified in the Gazette of IndiaThe Rural Development Ministry described it as a decisive reform in Indiarsquos rural employment and development framework According to the government the VBG RAM G scheme aligns rural development with the national vision of lsquoViksit Bharat 2047rsquoBesides guaranteeing 125 days of wage employment the Act allows states to notify a pause period of up to 60 days in a financial year to ensure adequate availability of agricultural labour during peak sowing and harvesting seasons PTI reported The Ministry said the Act aims to transform rural employment from a standalone welfare measure into an integrated instrument of developmentThe Bill was passed in Parliament last week amid Opposition protests The Congress continued its nationwide protests on Sunday accusing the Narendra Modi government of desecrating the groundbreaking law and claimed that two decades of progress under MGNREGA had been overturned without consultation and by bypassing parliamentary conventionsDismissing such criticism Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan alleged that misinformation was being spread about the new scheme which he described as a step forward from MGNREGA In a video posted on X Chouhan said that over Rs 151282 crore will be allocated to the VBG RAM G scheme to ensure adequate funding for rural employmentThere is a conspiracy to misguide the country and false information is being spread while the truth is that the VBG RAM G scheme is a step ahead of MGNREGA he saidAct modernises rural employment framework links wage work to productive assetsThe Ministry said the Act modernises the statutory framework enhances livelihood security strengthens income stability for rural households and links wage employment with the creation of durable and productive rural assets laying the foundation for a prosperous and resilient rural IndiaThe Act mandates payment of wages on a weekly basis or within 15 days of work completion PTI reported Delay compensation is payable in case of late paymentWage employment under the Act is aligned with four priority domains water security and waterrelated works core rural infrastructure livelihoodrelated infrastructure and mitigation of extreme weather eventsAll works are derived from Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans VGPPs prepared at the gram panchayat level through participatory processes and approved by the gram sabha These plans are digitally and spatially integrated with national platforms including lsquoPradhan Mantri Gati ShaktirsquoThis integrated planning framework will enable Ministries and Departments to implement works more effectively avoid duplication and wastage of public resources and accelerate development through saturationbased outcomes the Ministry saidThe costsharing pattern is 6040 between Centre and states 9010 for North Eastern and Himalayan States and 100 per cent Central funding for Union Territories without legislatures The Ministry clarified that normative allocations pertain to budgeting and fund flow and do not affect legal entitlements to employmentThe administrative expenditure ceiling has been raised from 6 per cent to 9 per cent allowing better staffing training technical capacity and fieldlevel supportTechnology under the Act is designed as an enabling mechanism not a barrier the Ministry addedWith PTI inputs