Paper: GS – II, Subject: Governance, Topic: Government Policies, Issue: VB-GRAM G Act vs MGNREGA.
Context:
The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act (VB-GRAM G Act) as a replacement for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) but it brings few real improvements and largely seeks to centralise authority while rebranding and claiming credit for existing provisions.
Key Highlights:
Dissecting the Arguments for VB-GRAM G Act:
The Illusion of an Enhanced Work Guarantee:
- The Central Government’s Claim: Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan asserted that the VB-GRAM G Act provides the same work guarantee as MGNREGA but with an enhanced entitlement of 125 days per household per year.
- The Reality: This claim is misleading due to the “switch-off” provision in Section 5(1) of the Act. This provision grants the Central government the discretion to notify the rural areas where the employment guarantee applies, effectively negating the guarantee itself.
- MGNREGA’s Potential: The extension to 125 days could have been implemented under MGNREGA without requiring a new Act. Some states already offer 125 days under MGNREGA.
| Key Issue | Government / Proponent Argument | The Reality / Counter-Argument |
| “Disentitlement Provisions” | Mr. Chouhan highlights the removal of these provisions in the VB-GRAM G Act as a significant improvement. | The provision (penalizing applicants who refused work) was rarely, if ever, used. Its removal is therefore considered inconsequential. |
| Funding Model | Shifting to “normative funding” rather than the current demand-driven approach. | Normative funding contradicts the core principle of an “employment guarantee” (which must be demand-driven) and effectively acts as a budget cap restricting expenditure. |
| Equitable Distribution | normative funding will ensure a more equitable distribution of funds across different states. | There is currently no strong correlation between MGNREGA employment and state poverty rates. A better solution would be raising wage rates in poorer states rather than capping budgets. |
Inter-State Employment Disparities:
- Employment under MGNREGA varies widely:
- Higher uptake in poorer states (e.g., Bihar, Jharkhand)
- Lower usage in relatively better-off states
Copy-Pasted Provisions and Misleading Claims:
- The Government’s Misrepresentation: Some proponents of the VB-GRAM G Act credit it for provisions that are directly copied or paraphrased from MGNREGA.
- Examples:
- The claim that the VB-GRAM G Act mandates weekly wage payments to address delayed wages, when this provision already exists in MGNREGA.
- The claim that Section 20 of the VB-GRAM G Act “strengthens social audits,” when it is nearly identical to Section 17 of MGNREGA.
The VB-GRAMG Act largely rebrands existing provisions, shifting away from MGNREGA’s rights-based, demand-driven guarantee toward centralised, normative control. India’s employment challenge needs stronger implementation, adequate funding, and timely payments under MGNREGA, not dilution of legal entitlements through new terminology.
Source: (The Hindu)
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