Ranchi: The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has strongly opposed the introduction of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Employment and Livelihood Mission (Rural) Bill, 2025 (VB-JIRAMJI Bill) in a statement issued on December 15. The party said the proposed legislation is an attempt to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and constitutes a direct attack on the employment rights of the rural poor.
The CPI(M) stated that the proposed Bill completely negates the basic character of MGNREGA. While MGNREGA is a universal, demand-driven and rights-based law, the VB-JIRAMJI Bill provides only a limited and conditional employment guarantee. It legally absolves the Central Government of its responsibility to allocate funds in accordance with demand.
The Polit Bureau described the government’s claim of increasing guaranteed employment from 100 to 125 days as misleading. According to the party, the Bill opens the door to excluding a large section of rural households under the pretext of “rationalising” job cards. Moreover, the provision allowing the suspension of the employment scheme for up to 60 days during the peak agricultural season will deprive rural families of work precisely when they need it most, forcing them to depend on landowners.
The statement also raised serious objections to making digital attendance mandatory at worksites, warning that it would lead to loss of employment, delays in wage payments and denial of workers’ rights.
The CPI(M) expressed grave concern over the proposed changes in the funding pattern. Under the Bill, the responsibility for wage payments in large states is to be shared between the Centre and the states in a 60:40 ratio, instead of being fully borne by the Centre as at present. In addition, the burden of unemployment allowance and compensation is shifted entirely to the states, imposing an unbearable financial strain on state governments.
The Polit Bureau criticised the proposed “normative allocation” system, under which the Centre would fix state-wise ceilings on expenditure, with any additional costs to be borne by the states. This, it said, would further restrict the scope of the programme and weaken the Centre’s accountability.
The party also said that the deliberate renaming of the scheme from MGNREGA to “JIRAMJI” reflects the ideological agenda of the BJP-RSS.
The CPI(M) demanded the immediate withdrawal of the VB-JIRAMJI Bill. Instead, it urged the Central Government to hold wide-ranging consultations with political parties, trade unions and organisations of the rural poor to strengthen MGNREGA and ensure its effective implementation as a universal, rights-based employment guarantee law.
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