Discuss the transition from MGNREGA to the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025. In what ways does it seek to strengthen the rural employment guarantee framework?

The VB–G RAM G Act, 2025 came into force across all rural areas on 1 July 2026, repealing the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA, 2005 [1]. It is the first structural rewrite of India's statutory right to work in two decades, retaining the guarantee while recasting its delivery architecture.

Nature of the transition

• Legal continuity: this is a repeal-and-replace, not a scheme; the guarantee remains a Parliamentary entitlement, judicially enforceable rather than executive largesse [1].
• Legislative course: Bill introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 2025, President's assent the same month, commencement notified for 1 July 2026 [1].
• Seamless migration: an interim allocation of about ₹95,692 crore was released to States for uninterrupted wage payments, and all registered workers were carried over to the new law [3].
• Document validity: existing e-KYC-verified MGNREGA Job Cards stay valid until new Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Cards are issued [3].

How it seeks to strengthen the framework

• Wider entitlement: guaranteed wage employment raised from 100 to 125 days per rural household per year [1].
• Implementation capacity: administrative expenditure ceiling raised from 6% to 9% of funds, addressing the chronic staffing and supervision deficit that weakened MGNREGA delivery [2].
• Livelihood orientation: the "Ajeevika" mandate shifts focus from bare wage relief towards durable rural assets and planned Gram Panchayat works [2].
• Transparency: e-KYC is used to de-duplicate rolls and curb ghost muster entries; the Centre has clarified it is a database-authentication tool and employment cannot be denied merely because e-KYC is pending [3].

The transition is therefore consolidative rather than dilutive — a broader guarantee with stronger administrative and digital scaffolding. Its success will hinge on States notifying schemes promptly and clearing the residual verification backlog through the exception mechanism, so that digital rigour reinforces, rather than rations, the right to work.