Ranchi, March 18 The Jharkhand assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the Centre to continue with the framework of the MGNREGA instead of its new modified version, the VB-G RAM G Act.
Rural Development Minister Dipika Pandey Singh moved the proposal in the House, which was passed by voice vote amid protests by BJP MLAs.
The BJP-led central government enacted the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill in December last year, replacing the MGNREGA, which was passed by the UPA in 2005.
Opposing the Centre’s VB-G RAM G, Pandey proposed to continue with the centrally-sponsored framework of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) to protect the livelihoods of the rural population in the state.
“I propose that the demand-based, rights-based, and fully Centrally-sponsored structure of the MGNREGA scheme be maintained. No tampering of any kind should be done with the provisions of the original Act of 2005 to protect the interests of lakhs of job card holder families in Jharkhand,” Pandey said.
She also suggested increasing the guarantee of 100 days of employment under MGNREGA to 150 days to stop migration.
President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to the VB-G RAM G Bill on December 21 last year after it was passed in Parliament on December 18. It guarantees 125 days of wage employment per rural household per financial year.
Pandey said MGNREGA has been a lifeline for families in Jharkhand, which played a historical role in reducing poverty, curbing migration, and women's empowerment.
“There are apprehensions that provisions of VB-G RAM G may lead to violations of the rights of rural people. The proposed Act eliminates the legal guarantee to demand work and secure employment. It also adversely affects the system of demand-driven employment in Jharkhand, particularly for the landless, labourers, and women,” she said.
The minister added that the new Act imposes an additional burden on the states.
“Under the new Act, the Centre-state’s 60:40 financial funding ratio is against the federal structure and will impose an unbearable financial burden on states with limited resources, such as Jharkhand. The Centre should continue to provide financial support as it has done in the past,” Pandey added.
The Act also curtails the powers of the Gram Panchayats, and removing Mahatma Gandhi's name from the scheme diminishes the very philosophy that advocates for the upliftment of the last person in society, she said.
