The Government today introduced the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill 2025 was introduced in the Lok Sabha. The legislation will replace the twenty-year-old Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA). The Bill seeks to establish a rural development framework aligned with the national vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.
Under the legislation, a statutory guarantee of one hundred and twenty-five days of wage employment will be provided in every financial year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work. It will also promote empowerment, growth, convergence and saturation for a prosperous and resilient rural Bharat. All works undertaken under this Bill will be aggregated into the Viksit Bharat National Rural Infrastructure Stack, creating a unified national framework for rural public works.
The thematic priority will be accorded to water security through water-related works, core rural infrastructure, livelihood-related infrastructure, and special works aimed at mitigating the impact of extreme weather events and disaster preparedness. This approach will ensure the creation of productive, durable, resilient and transformative rural assets across the country.
Introducing the Bill, Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, the government is working towards realising Mahatma Gandhi’s vision and establishing the Ram Rajya that Bapu had envisioned.
He said, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several welfare schemes are being implemented for the upliftment of the poor. He said, during the UPA government, an amount of two lakh 13 thousand crore rupees was spent on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), while the Modi government has spent over eight lakh 53 thousand crore rupees on the scheme and has made sustained efforts to further strengthen it.
Mr Chouhan said through this new bill, the government has proposed to increase the guaranteed days of employment from hundred days to 125 days. He said, a provision of more than one lakh 51 thousand crore rupees has been made under this bill. The Minister emphasised that the bill will ensure the comprehensive development of villages and help in building self-reliant and developed rural areas.
This landmark legislation aims to establish a future-ready, convergence-driven,saturation-oriented rural development architecture. It will support the accelerated pace of rural development in accordance with the vision of Viksit Bharat and empower the rural households through increased employment opportunities.
The Bill provides for institutionalising convergence of all relevant schemes through a unified planning process anchored in Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans. The Bill also has provisions to facilitate the availability of farm labour during peak agricultural seasons.
Under the Bill, wage rates will be notified by the Central Government, and until such notification, the existing MGNREGA wage rates will continue to apply. The legislation also provides for an unemployment allowance if employment is not provided within 15 days.
