• The bill is called the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025 (VB-G RAM G).
• It replaces the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), which was India’s landmark rural employment law enacted in 2005.

• It is a statutory framework for rural wage employment and asset creation, meant to support livelihoods and rural infrastructure.
• The new law continues a rural employment guarantee but with structural and funding changes.

• Under the new law, every rural household whose adults volunteer for unskilled work is entitled to 125 days of wage employment per year.
• This increases the employment entitlement from the 100 days under MGNREGA.

• Central government and states share costs (e.g., 60:40 for most states).
• 90:10 share for northeastern & Himalayan states.
• Union Territories without legislatures will have the Centre bear the entire cost.

• The new bill shifts from demand-driven funding to normative state-wise allocations for each year.
• If a state exceeds its allocation, the additional cost must be borne by the state government.
• MGNREGA’s open-ended funding (where more funds were released if more work was demanded) is no longer the model.

• For the first time, the law allows states to notify up to 60 days of “work pause” during peak agricultural seasons (sowing/harvesting).
• During these periods, employment guarantee works will not be undertaken to ensure labour availability for farming.

• The legislation puts sharper emphasis on creating durable rural assets like water security, core infrastructure and livelihood-linked projects.
• Works must be aligned with village development plans and national rural infrastructure priorities.

• Wages will generally be paid weekly or within a maximum of 15 days after completion of work, potentially speeding up payments to workers.
• The law retains provisions like unemployment allowance if a person is not provided work in time, though administrative roles and digital monitoring are updated.

• The framework introduces councils and committees at central and state levels for planning, monitoring and execution.
• It includes digital attendance systems, biometric checks, geo-tagging and social audits to enhance transparency and execution.

• Many opinion pieces argue that renaming and restructuring the scheme under a new title weakens the original rights-based guarantee. Critics point out:
• The switch from MGNREGA to VB-G RAM G removes the explicit statutory right to work and replaces it with what may become an allocation-based scheme, reducing the legal guarantee of employment.
• The funding model now requires cost sharing with states (e.g., 60:40), unlike MGNREGA’s previous 100% central funding, potentially limiting the scheme’s effectiveness if states struggle financially.
• Opposition leaders and commentators say removing Mahatma Gandhi’s name is symbolic of an erosion of the welfare state’s historic commitments to rural workers.

Feature / Aspect	MGNREGA (2005)	VB-G RAM G Bill (2025)
Legal Basis	Rights-based statutory guarantee (demand-driven)	Allocation-based framework with budget caps (supply-driven).
Guaranteed Work Days	100 days per rural household per year	125 days per rural household per year
Funding Pattern (Wages/Materials)	Centre funds 100 % of wage costs; materials cost shared (Centre & states)	Centrally Sponsored Scheme with Centre-State cost sharing: typically 60:40; 90:10 for NE/Himalayan states; UTs without legislature fully Centre-funded
Budget Structure	Open-ended, demand-based funding	Normative state-wise allocation with capped budgets (excess borne by states)
Work Availability Across Year	Work can be sought year-round	Allows up to 60-day “pause” during peak sowing/harvest agricultural seasons — no work provided then
Asset Focus / Types of Work	Broad rural works (water conservation, land devpt, drought proofing, irrigation, flood control)	Four priority domains: water security, core rural infrastructure, livelihood-linked infrastructure, climate/extreme event mitigation
Local Planning & Panchayat Role	Gram panchayats & gram sabhas identify and plan works based on local needs	Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans aligned with national infrastructure stacks (e.g., PM Gati Shakti) and integrated digital governance
Monitoring & Technology	Basic monitoring; social audits	Expanded digital ecosystem including geotagging, biometric attendance, AI tools, proactive disclosures, dashboards
Right to Work Guarantee	Legal enforceable right – demand must be met	Guarantee subject to allocations and state notification of areas; work depends on budget & notified areas
Wage Payment Timeline	Up to 15 days maximum after work	Wages required to be paid weekly or within 15 days
Unemployment Allowance	Provision under specific conditions	Retained and strengthened in new Bill to ensure allowance if work not provided in time

• The new Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025 replaces MGNREGA’s statutory right to work with a more mission-oriented livelihoods framework that still aims to provide rural wage work tied to asset creation and local planning.
• Future focus: The programme will increasingly integrate rural employment with long-term rural asset creation (water security, infrastructure, climate resilience) instead of only responding to immediate job demands.

• Institutional councils at Centre and states for planning and oversight,
• Expanded digital monitoring (biometric attendance, GPS tracking), and
• Social audits & transparency mechanisms to improve delivery.

• States with stronger finances may implement the scheme more effectively,
• States under fiscal stress may struggle to meet demands, potentially impacting work availability.

• The 60-day work pause during peak agricultural periods could limit year-round job access for workers who need it most.
• How well the Bill’s asset-linked work model aligns with local needs vs central priorities will shape rural uptake and satisfaction.
• Effective state-level capacity building will be essential for implementation, monitoring, and timely wage payment.

• It extends the days of work from 100 to 125 and re-aligns rural jobs with long-term development goals rather than just wage support.
• It introduces modern monitoring & governance systems, aiming for better transparency.
• It shifts fiscal responsibility partly to states, making rural job support more predictable but also potentially uneven across regions.

• Implementation quality will determine whether rural households actually receive more stable employment and income.
• State capacities and political will will impact how effectively the new framework functions in practice.

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