NEW DELHI, May 11: The Centre on Monday announced that the new Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), or VB-G RAM G Act, 2025, will come into force across India from July 1, replacing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
The government presented the legislation as a “next-generation rural development framework” aligned with the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, promising an expansion of guaranteed wage employment from 100 days to 125 days a year while linking rural employment more closely with infrastructure creation, climate resilience and village-level planning.
However, opposition parties and labour rights activists have raised concerns over the repeal of MGNREGA, arguing that the existing law had evolved into a rights-based social protection framework and warning that increased digitisation, face-authentication attendance and administrative restructuring could create barriers for vulnerable workers.
What changes under the new law?
Under the new Act, every rural household whose adult members volunteer for unskilled manual work will be entitled to 125 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year, up from 100 days under MGNREGA.
The Centre said the scheme will focus on four broad categories of works – water security projects; core rural infrastructure; livelihood-related infrastructure; and extreme weather mitigation works.Under MGNREGA, work was divided into broad categories such as water conservation, drought-proofing, irrigation, renovation of traditional water bodies, land development, and flood control.
The law also introduces the concept of “Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans” (VGPPs), which will serve as convergence-based local development plans prepared by Gram Panchayats and approved by Gram Sabhas.
How will the transition happen?
The Centre has said the transition from MGNREGA to the new law will be “seamless and uninterrupted”. MGNREGA will formally stand repealed from July 1, 2026, the same date on which the VB-G RAM G Act comes into effect.
Existing MGNREGA works will continue and will be migrated into the new framework. The government has said incomplete public assets and ongoing projects will be prioritised for completion.
Existing job cards will also remain valid temporarily for workers whose e-KYC has already been completed, until new “Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Cards” are issued.
What remains unchanged?
Employment must still be provided within 15 days of demand, failing which workers become eligible for unemployment allowance payable by the state governments.Wages will continue to be paid through direct benefit transfer into bank or post office accounts and must be disbursed weekly or within a fortnight after closure of the muster roll.
The law also retains provisions for compensation in case of delayed wage payments.
How will funding work?
The funding patterns for states under the scheme is 90:10 for northeastern and Himalayan states; 60:40 for other states and Union Territories with legislatures, and 100 per cent central funding for Union Territories without legislatures.
The material component expenditure has been capped at 40 per cent at the district level.
Under MGNREGS, 100 per cent of the wages were paid by the Centre, while the material cost would be shared 75:25 between the Centre and the states. (PTI)
