Technology integration in rural welfare schemes raises both efficiency and exclusion concerns. With reference to Sections 23 and 24 of the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025, discuss how biometric and geospatial mandates can be implemented without marginalising the digitally excluded rural poor.

Q. Technology integration in rural welfare schemes raises both efficiency and exclusion concerns. With reference to Sections 23 and 24 of the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025, discuss how biometric and geospatial mandates can be implemented without marginalising the digitally excluded rural poor. (15 marks, 250 words)

Sections 23 and 24 of the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025 — which replaces MGNREGA from July 1, 2026 — mandate biometric authentication, geo-tagging and real-time dashboards for the 125-day rural jobs guarantee [1]. This deepens transparency, but risks converting a rights-based entitlement into a technology-gated benefit.

Efficiency gains - Biometric authentication curbs ghost workers and muster-roll fraud, plugging leakages that plagued MGNREGA [1]. - Geo-tagging of assets verifies genuine work, improving asset quality and audit reliability [2]. - Real-time dashboards and weekly disclosure enable near-instant grievance tracking and faster wage settlement [2].

Exclusion concerns - Authentication failures — worn fingerprints, patchy connectivity — can deny work to the poorest, echoing Aadhaar-linked PDS exclusions. - Digital divide disadvantages elderly, women and remote-habitation workers lacking devices or literacy. - Rigid geo-tagging may reject legitimate work in low-signal terrain, delaying payments.

Making it inclusive - Fallback provisions: mandatory manual/exception muster rolls where biometrics fail — deny wages never, verify later. - Strengthen Section 20 Gram Sabha social audits as a human check on digital records [2]. - Leverage the higher 9% administrative cap to deploy assisted-authentication and Rozgar Sevaks at worksites [1]. - Preserve the 15-day unemployment allowance so technical glitches never defeat the guarantee [1].

Technology should enable the guarantee, not gatekeep it. Aligned with the SDG-8 "leave no one behind" principle, embedding statutory fallbacks and community audits alongside biometrics ensures the digitally excluded remain within, not outside, the promise of guaranteed work.

(~250 words)

Sources: 1. Viksit Bharat–G RAM G Act 2025 (PIB Press Note) — 125-day guarantee, biometric/geo-tagging mandate, 9% admin cap, 15-day unemployment allowance 2. VB–G RAM G Bill, 2025 — Bill Track, PRS Legislative Research — Sections 23–24 technology provisions, weekly disclosure, geo-tagging, social audit