New Bill dilutes rural jobs as a right, burdens state finances

A fresh controversy has been triggered by a new Bill that seeks to replace the fairly successful, two-decades-old rural jobs scheme. First, the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill proposes to extend to 125 the number of days of work guaranteed every year, from 100 under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. Second, it alters the funding pattern from a full central payout to 60:40 sharing between the Centre and most states; the ratio for the northeastern and northern hill states is 90:10.

MGNREGA was enacted in 2005 as an answer to crushing rural poverty. It aimed to boost rural incomes and create durable infrastructure like water bodies and roads. It was a revolutionary move that made rural employment a right. It’s odd of the current government to tinker with the success story when rural jobs are hard to come by. The scheme serves not only as a safety net during droughts and other crises; it also empowers rural communities because the funding is demand-driven, with the planning left to local bodies like panchayats. Neither can it be explained by the NDA government’s penchant for renaming old schemes. Why drop Mahatma Gandhi’s association with a rural jobs scheme?