Syllabus: Inclusive growth and issues arising from it.
Context and Constitutional Background
- The Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025 replaced MGNREGA.
- The Act received Presidential assent, formally ending the earlier rural job guarantee framework.
- Article 21 guarantees the right to life, including the right to livelihood, as affirmed by the Supreme Court.
- The Olga Tellis (1985) judgment linked livelihood directly with the constitutional right to life.
MGNREGA: Rights-Based Framework
- MGNREGA recognised right to work on demand as a legal and enforceable entitlement.
- Guaranteed unemployment allowance if work was not provided within 15 days.
- Mandated timely wage payments, compensation for delays, minimum wages, and gender parity.
- Strengthened Panchayati Raj Institutions, supporting decentralised governance under the 73rd Amendment.
- Emphasised creation of durable ecological and livelihood-supporting assets.
Documented Positive Outcomes of MGNREGA
- Universal entitlement ensured inclusion without targeting-based exclusions.
- Rural incomes increased, contributing to poverty reduction and school enrolment growth.
- Women’s participation averaged around 58%, enhancing gender equity.
- Dependence on moneylenders declined significantly, improving household financial security.
- Initially criticised, MGNREGA was later acknowledged globally as a successful rural development model.
- Played a crucial role in livelihood protection during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Erosion of MGNREGA in the Last Decade
- Persistent underfunding caused chronic wage delays and rationing of work.
- Technocratic measures increased exclusions, administrative opacity, and corruption risks.
- Inadequate staffing weakened oversight and undermined social audits.
Key Changes under VB-G RAM G Act, 2025
- Union government gains discretionary authority over location, nature, and funding of works.
- Funding shifts from demand-driven to normative, centrally controlled allocations.
- Centre’s responsibility for wage delay compensation has been removed.
- Funding ratio altered to 60:40, increasing fiscal burden on States.
- States must bear expenditure beyond allocations, risking political favouritism.
Labour and Equity Concerns
- Employment restricted for 60 agricultural days, harming landless workers and women.
- Claim of 125 days employment contradicts existing funding realities.
- Likely outcomes include suppressed work demand, unemployment, and distress migration.
- No new safeguards introduced to prevent corruption or strengthen accountability.
Conclusion
- MGNREGA embodied Gandhian decentralisation and Ambedkarite rights-based empowerment.
- The new Act institutionalises earlier erosion, weakening rural livelihoods and constitutional guarantees.