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New Delhi: Days after the Centre passed the new G RAM G bill, which is all set to replace MNREGA, the Congress on Saturday announced its decision to launch a nationwide 'Save MNREGA' campaign from January 5. The party has decided to make it a centre of the movement.
Speaking to the media after the meeting of the Congress Working Committee in the national capital on Saturday, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said, that the party has decided to protect the MNREGA.
“In the meeting, we took an oath. We decided to launch a massive movement across the country, making the MNREGA scheme the central point. Indian National Congress party, taking a leading role, will launch the MNREGA Save Campaign from January 5th,” news agency ANI quoted Kharge as saying.
He added, “We will protect the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) at all costs. MNREGA is not just a scheme but a right to work guaranteed by the Constitution of India. We also pledge to democratically oppose every conspiracy to remove Gandhiji's name from MNREGA.”
The Congress president’s remarks came days after President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent the Viksit Bharat--Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB--G RAM G) Bill, 2025, which since become an Act. As per a statement by the President’s Secretariat, the bill marked a significant milestone in the transformation of rural employment policy.
The Act provides a statutory wage employment guarantee to 125 days for rural households. It further seeks to advance empowerment, inclusive growth, convergence of development initiatives, and saturation-based delivery, strengthening the foundation for a resilient, prosperous, and self-reliant Rural Bharat.
It will replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005, with a statutory framework that will improve livelihood security. It has been aligned with the vision of Viksit Bharat at 2047.