New Delhi, May 11 (IANS): The Centre on Monday notified the commencement of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), or VB G RAM G, the new rural employment guarantee scheme set to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) across all rural areas from July 1, on which date MGNREGA will stand repealed. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced that the new scheme will increase the guaranteed days of employment for rural labourers from 100 to 125 days, while the combined financial outlay from both the Central and state governments under the scheme will exceed Rs 1,51,000 crore. The Minister further stated that efforts are being made to ensure payment to labourers within three days, with compensation provisions in cases of delayed payments, and that an unemployment allowance will also be granted if employment is not provided. In the interim period leading up to July 1, work under MGNREGA will continue as usual, with most states being given six months to complete the necessary preparations for the transition.
For states that fail to complete the requisite preparations by July 1, work will proceed directly under the ‘Viksit Bharat @ 2047’ scheme, the Minister clarified. Existing e-KYC verified MGNREGA job cards will remain valid under VB G RAM G until the new Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Cards are issued, ensuring continuity of benefits for existing beneficiaries. Workers without job cards may continue to register at the Gram Panchayat level and must not be denied employment due to pending e-KYC verification, according to the official notification. Chouhan described the transition as the beginning of “a new era of integrated, future-ready and productivity-oriented rural transformation” aligned with the vision of Viksit Bharat, marking one of the most significant overhauls of India’s rural employment framework in recent decades.