For nearly 20 years, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has shaped how rural employment support works in India — offering wage work close to home, creating village-level assets, and providing income during lean agricultural seasons.
Over time, it has become one of the country’s most wide-reaching public programmes, touching millions of households across states and regions.
Now, the government is proposing a new framework — the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, commonly referred to as the VB-G RAM G Bill — which aims to replace MGNREGA with a broader mission linking rural employment to livelihoods, infrastructure creation, and long-term development goals under the vision of a Viksit Bharat 2047.
The proposal marks a shift in how rural work is imagined: from a standalone employment guarantee to a model that integrates jobs with local development priorities. Supporters say this could help build durable assets and strengthen rural economies. Critics, meanwhile, are closely examining what this change could mean for workers, states, and the idea of a legal right to work.
Why is this change happening
MGNREGA has been a rights-based guarantee of work since 2005, meaning any adult in a rural household who wants unskilled work could demand it and get paid work for up to 100 days a year. It has been a safety net for millions of rural families during droughts, crop failures, or slow agricultural seasons.
But in recent years, the government has said that rural conditions have changed — with better connectivity, financial services, and other job avenues — and that the law needs an update to fit a “Viksit Bharat 2047” development vision.
What’s new in VB-G RAM G
Here are the key changes proposed in the new bill:
1. More guaranteed work days
The bill proposes increasing the number of guaranteed work days from 100 to 125 days in a financial year for rural households that volunteer for unskilled manual labour.
2. Seasonal pause in work
For the first time, there will be a “pause” in the employment guarantee for up to 60 days a year — intended to cover peak sowing and harvesting seasons, so that rural labour is available for farming when it matters most.
3. Shared funding between the centre and state
Under MGNREGA, the central government paid all wages for unskilled work and a large share of material costs. The new law proposes a cost-sharing model in which states bear part of the financial responsibility — roughly 40% in most states and 10% in some hilly or northeastern regions.
4. Weekly wage payments
The Bill states that wage disbursements will be made on a weekly basis, or at most within a fortnight of the work being done, aiming to provide a more timely and reliable income for rural workers.
MGNREGA has been one of India’s biggest social safety nets, especially for the poorest rural households.
Photograph: (PradeepGaurs/Shutterstock)
The Bill also proposes a special schedule of rates for vulnerable groups, including women, the elderly, persons with disabilities, and those with debilitating ailments, to enable their participation in suitable categories of work.
5. Focused types of work
The new framework aims to link the guaranteed work with four priority areas:
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Water security.
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Rural infrastructure (like roads and storage).
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Livelihood-related infrastructure.
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Climate adaptation and resilience work.
The idea is that the work done will create lasting assets that help rural economies in the long term.
What stays the same
Although the structure is changing, the bill would still require governments to provide wage work when applied for, and maintain unemployment allowance provisions (compensation if work is not provided on time).
Why does this matter on the ground
MGNREGA has been one of India’s biggest social safety nets, especially for the poorest rural households. It helps people earn money during lean seasons and provides a predictable source of income. A lot of people, including labour rights groups, argue that replacing it with a new law could change the very nature of the guarantee.
Critics — including labour organisations — say that MGNREGA’s rights-based legal guarantee has been crucial for rural workers, and that the new bill may turn it into a more budget-bound and conditional programme, with less accountability on the government.
However, the government argues this new law is meant to modernise rural employment support, expand guaranteed days, and link work to lasting rural development goals aligned with a long-term national vision.
What happens next?
The VB-G RAM G Bill is expected to be introduced in the Parliament’s Winter Session. If passed, it would formally repeal MGNREGA and replace it with this new framework, reshaping how rural job guarantees and livelihood support functions in India
Feature image from Shutterstock
