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Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025

Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025, commonly referred to as the VB–G RAM G Act, 2025 is an Indian social welfare legislation that aims to guarantee the 'right to work'. It was passed by the Parliament of India on 18–19 December 2025. The bill seeks to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA) with a revised statutory framework for rural employment and livelihood security, as part of the Government of India's long–term development vision, Viksit Bharat @2047.

The act increases the statutory employment guarantee for rural households from 100 to 125 days per financial year and introduces changes to funding patterns, planning mechanisms, and implementation structures under the Ministry of Rural Development.

Background

The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), enacted in 2005, provided a legal guarantee of 100 days of unskilled wage employment to rural households. Over the years, the Government of India stated that significant changes in rural infrastructure, poverty reduction, digital governance, and livelihood patterns necessitated a revised legislative framework for rural employment.

According to the Ministry of Rural Development, the VB–G RAM G Bill was introduced to align rural employment guarantees with contemporary development priorities and to integrate employment generation with infrastructure creation and livelihood enhancement under the Viksit Bharat @2047 vision.

Objectives

The stated objectives of the bill are structured around four pillars:

  • Empowerment of rural households through enhanced employment security
  • Growth through the creation of durable rural assets
  • Convergence of multiple rural development schemes at the village level
  • Saturation coverage of eligible households and infrastructure needs

The bill also seeks to balance rural wage employment with agricultural labour requirements during peak farming seasons.

Key provisions

  • Employment guarantee: Provides a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment per financial year to each rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work.
  • Replacement of MGNREGA: Repeals the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005, and subsumes its programmes, assets, and institutional structures.
  • Funding pattern: Implements the scheme as a centrally sponsored programme with a 60:40 Centre–State cost–sharing ratio for most states, and 90:10 for north–eastern states and Union Territories of India.
  • Normative allocation: Introduces annual normative financial allocations to states, with expenditure beyond allocations to be borne by state governments.
  • Agricultural season provision: Allows states to notify up to 60 days annually during sowing or harvesting seasons when employment under the scheme may be temporarily suspended.
  • Planning framework: Mandates preparation of village–level development plans known as Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans and their integration into a national rural infrastructure planning system.
  • Governance and transparency: Expands administrative expenditure limits, mandates technology–based monitoring, social audits, and public disclosure mechanisms at the Gram Panchayat level.

Implementation

The bill requires state governments to notify implementing schemes within six months of the Act coming into force. Employment planning and execution are to be carried out primarily through Gram Panchayats, with oversight from district, state, and central authorities.

Central and State Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Councils are to be constituted for policy guidance and monitoring. The Ministry of Rural Development will oversee implementation, funding releases, and evaluation through digital monitoring systems.

The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 16 December 2025 by the Minister of Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Following approximately eight hours of debate on 17 December 2025, the minister delivered a concluding statement on 18 December, after which the bill was passed by the Lok Sabha through a voice vote on the same day. Later on the same day, the bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha by the Minister of Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan. After nearly six hours of debate and discussion, the Rajya Sabha passed the bill shortly after midnight on 19 December 2025. On 21 December 2025, the bill received the assent of the President of India, thereby replacing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005.

Parliamentary debate and reactions

The passage of the bill generated significant debate in Parliament. Opposition parties criticised the replacement of MGNREGA, the removal of Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the legislation, and the shift from a demand–driven funding model to normative allocations.

Members of the Indian National Congress, Left parties, and other opposition groups argued that the bill could weaken the legal guarantee of employment and impose a greater financial burden on states. Economists and civil society representatives expressed concerns that the revised framework could reduce effective access to guaranteed employment.

The government defended the bill as a modernization of rural employment legislation, stating that it strengthens guarantees, improves asset creation, and aligns employment generation with long–term development planning.

See also

References