The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Centre’s Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025, (VB-G RAM G) replacing UPA-era MGNREGA amid opposition uproar. A record 14-hour-long discussion was held in Lok Sabha on the Bill. A total of 98 members of parliament participated in the discussion, which saw opposition demanding to send the Bill to the standing committee. The government maintained the Bill would bring reforms in the MGNREGA scheme, but the opposition is doubtful about that.
So, what exactly are they claiming?
What opposition said against the Bill
From the name to provisions and legal guarantee, the opposition made several claims against the Bill. Describing the Bill as an important one, Congress MP K Suresh urged the House to send the Bill to the Standing Committee. He said the Bill requires proper and deeper scrutiny, which was visible through the length and intensity of the debate itself.
“This is an important bill, which is why the House has discussed it for so long. More than 98 members from both sides participated in this debate. The opposition party strongly opposes this bill. The INDIA bloc demanded that this bill be sent to the Standing Committee,” Suresh said, quoted PTI.
Highlighting the provisions of the Bill, several MPs strongly objected to the renaming of MNREGA and changes in the funding pattern. Congress MP Vamsi Krishna Gaddam questioned the government’s intentions, and called the changes “unnecessary decisions.”
“All of us in the country love Mahatma Gandhi, except the BJP. It is sad to know that the name of Mahatma Gandhi is being removed from this scheme, and 40 per cent of the funding will now be done by the state government, as against 100 per cent central funding earlier,” he said. The MPs also called out the BJP and RSS for having an ideology against the interests of the people.
Echoing similar concerns, Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla said the Bill not only changes the scheme’s name but also imposes a financial share on state governments. “They are trying to tell the country that Modi ji has brought back Ram. If Modi ji is so capable, he should bring back Nirav Modi,” Aujla added.
During the discussion, TMC MP Mahua Moitra said the Bill snatches away the legal 100 days guarantee of MNREGA. She said the Bill mentions the word ‘guarantee’ 92 times, but not offers it even a single time. Reading out four provisions of the Bill, the Bengal MP stressed the Centre has transformed the scheme from ‘legal right’ based to an ‘allocation’ based employment.
“‘G-RAM-G’ Bill provides no guarantee for rural employment, promising 125 workdays is just ‘eyewash’,” she said, adding that in the past few years, the Centre did not provide the funding and then national average under the scheme stood at 50-55 days.
Another MP, RLP President Hanuman Beniwal said the States will not be able to handle the financial burden the “bill is going to pose. States will not implement this scheme and will eventually put an end to it…”
As per the new provisions, the earlier Centre-funded scheme will now be shared by states as well. As per Section 22 of the Bill, the fund-sharing pattern between the Central Government and the State Governments will be 60:40, while for the North Eastern States, Himalayan States, and Union Territories (Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir), it will be 90:10.
Treasury benches defend Bill
Countering the opposition’s stand, BJP MP Jagadambika Pal said the Bill translates Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s vision of Viksit Bharat into reality by strengthening rural employment and livelihood security. He added the proposed law goes beyond the existing Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
“The Viksit Bharat-G RAM G amendment bill introduced today brings the Prime Minister’s idea of a Viksit Bharat to reality. This bill ensures that poor people living in villages have employment year-round,” Pal said.
Defending the provisions, he added that once the guaranteed employment period ends, agricultural labour demand would further absorb workers, creating a continuous cycle of livelihood opportunities.
The MP further said the policy decisions under the new framework would be taken by a Central Council with representation from states and labour organisations, ensuring cooperative federalism.
BJP MP Basavaraj S. Bommai said the legislation was not meant to satisfy the opposition but to address the changing needs of rural India.
“We are not here to satisfy the opposition. They are just trying to politicise everything. It is for the development of the rural masses. The dynamics have changed, and so have the needs. We are reviewing the entire process after numerous complaints about the misuse of funds. This is why technology is being used now: to block all misdeeds. This time, the states will have to contribute rather than spend all their money on guarantees and other low-cost items. They will have to allocate funds to support the people. It is the people’s money. Instead of just distributing that money to the people, it is time they value labour and pay wages and salaries to them…” he added.
Meanwhile, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey launched a sharp attack on the Congress, and said the MNREGA had become an “epicentre of corruption.” Citing Articles 49 and 51(a) of the Constitution, the BJP MP argued that national figures such as the President, Vice President and the Father of the Nation should not be used for political purposes.
“Have you ever come across a scheme in the name of the President or the Vice President? How can there be a scheme in the name of the Father of the Nation?” Dubey asked.
“Congress is rattled because it will not be able to make money in the name of Mahatma Gandhi,” he claimed.
The Bill, if cleared by Lok Sabha, will be taken to Rajya Sabha for discussion.