Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing his concerns over the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), or VB-G RAM G Bill, passed by Parliament to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA).
Requesting the Union government to refrain from implementing the proposed law, the Chief Minister stated that many provisions in the new legislation will adversely affect States’ finances.
MGNREGA was a fully Centrally-sponsored scheme. However, the new Bill reduces the Central share of wages to 60%, dealing a blow to States. According to preliminary estimates, Kerala alone will suffer an economic loss of about ₹3,500 crore annually. The MGNREGA was launched at a time when the country’s rural economy was facing a severe crisis. In the current situation of increasing unemployment and inequality, a scheme that provides employment on demand is crucial for the welfare of the nation.
Kerala has always been at the forefront in the efficient implementation of the employment guarantee scheme. Any change made to the decentralised nature of the scheme will significantly impact States and undermine the scheme’s objectives, he said. The Chief Minister also indicated in the letter that the Kerala government is of the strong opinion that the name of Mahatma Gandhi, who toiled hard his entire life to wipe away the tears of the poor, should continue to be associated with such a scheme. The Chief Minister also pointed out in the letter that the new law will pave the way for bureaucratic domination contrary to the Gandhian principles of decentralisation, and that it is against the ideas of decentralisation envisaged by the 73rd and 74th amendments to the Constitution, he said in the letter.
Published – December 19, 2025 09:04 pm IST
