Nagaland: DCC Mkg slams replacement of MGNREGA Act

District Congress Committee (DCC) Mokokchung, has strongly criticised the replacement of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) with the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Act, 2025, approved in December last year.
Addressing press conference at its office on Friday, DCC officials termed the move an “attack on the constitutional Right to Work,” alleging that the new scheme strips rural families of their legal guarantee to employment. They stated that under MGNREGA, work was a available throughout the year at notified minimum wages, but under VB-G RAM G, wages would be set arbitrarily, with no guarantee of revisions, and work would be restricted during harvest seasons. DCC further alleged that the new Act undermines Gram Panchayats by transferring powers to contractors, reducing Panchayats to mere implementing agencies of centrally dictated projects. They claimed that this shift would erode local decision-making and divert workers into contractor-driven labour supply.
Highlighting financial implications, the officials pointed out that while MGNREGA was fully funded by the Union Government, the new scheme requires states to bear 40% of wage costs (10% for North-East and Himalayan states), thereby burdening state governments.
DCC underscored MGNREGA’s role as a lifeline for rural workers over the past two decades, citing its impact during the COVID-19 pandemic when it provided employment to 4.6 crore families. They noted that since its inception in 2006, MGNREGA generated over 180 crore workdays and created nearly 10 crore rural assets, with multiple studies and audits affirming its effectiveness.
Stating that the replacement of MGNREGA would have far-reaching consequences for rural communities, the DCC asserted its duty to sensitise people about the new Act and its implications, calling the change an “assault on rural livelihoods.”