G Ram G Bill: The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill 2025, even as Opposition members protested inside the House by tearing copies of the bill and alleging that the government was erasing Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy by dropping his name from the existing scheme Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
What Does 'No Work For 60 Days' Mean
As per the G Ram G Bill, the state governments are required to identify a 60-day period each year, aligned with peak sowing and harvesting seasons, during which no work shall be undertaken under the rural job guarantee scheme.
Why Govt Proposed G Ram G Bill
As per the government, the G Ram G Bill provides a modern rural employment framework aligned with Viksit Bharat 2047. It guarantees 125 days of wage employment per rural household.
The government has justified the 'no work for 60 days' provision, stating that the move will ensure adequate labour supply. The Reserve Bank of India in one of its annual reports stated that the MGNREGA is causing a labour crisis in agriculture.
"In view of the enhanced wage-employment guarantee for the rural workforce, it is also crucial to facilitate the availability of farm labour, especially during the peak agricultural season," the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill stated.
Government sources, cited by a Deccan Herald report, said the problem of artificial wage inflation can also be tackled by halting public works during peak seasons. They further stated that the provisions will reduce farmer losses, enhance produce and improve accessibility to markets.
Opposition On G Ram G Bill
Activists, economists, politicians and trade union leaders at a recent event at the Press Club of India, termed the G Ram G Bill an assault on the right to work for the poor. Speakers came down heavily on the government over the G Ram G Bill’s 'no work for 60 days' provision. They said the clause weakens the idea of a legal job guarantee.
"A job guarantee means work on demand," said a development economist Jayati Ghosh, as quoted by The Wire. "By legally allowing the state to suspend work for up to 60 days, the Act itself authorises non-provision of employment, even if people need income urgently. This turns a right into a conditional welfare scheme," she added.
Swaraj India president Yogendra Yadav said the new law dilutes provisions of the MGNREGA. “Twenty years ago, a historic Act was brought in India. For the first time, the right to work as envisioned by the Constitution was given to the people. Today, we’re getting a new law which is diluting and finishing the provisions of the MGNREGA,” Yadav said, as per an Indian Express report. CPI leader Annie Raja also targeted the Centre over providing benefits to capitalists under the new bill.