From Panchayats To States: Workers’ Groups Plan Phased Resistance To VB-GRAM(G)

Workers from more than 10 states, representatives of farmers’ unions under the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), agricultural and rural workers’ unions, members of NREGA Sangharsh Morcha, activists and academics came together in Delhi on Wednesday. Their objective: Launch a joint grassroots protest movement against the proposed Viksit Bharat—Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) scheme set to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The meeting, held at Harkishan Singh Surjeet Bhawan, concluded with a call to mobilise rural workers across the country around three core demands: complete rejection of the new scheme, restoration of MGNREGA in its original rights-based form, and expansion of guaranteed employment to 200 days with dignified wages of ₹700 per day, to be decided at the panchayat level.

“This is a movement to tell people what this new bill actually means,” said noted economist and former Jawaharlal Nehru University professor Jayati Ghosh, warning that the changes would fundamentally alter the nature of rural employment guarantees while addressing the gathering..

From rights-based work to a capped scheme

The BJP-led Union government last month introduced VB-GRAM(G) as a replacement for the nearly two-decade-old MGNREGA, which was enacted by Parliament in 2005 and implemented from February 2006. MGNREGA provides a legal guarantee of 100 days of unskilled manual work to rural households and has long been seen as a demand-driven, rights-based welfare programme.

Unions and activists, however, argue that VB-GRAM(G) changes not just the name but the basic character of the scheme.

While the new programme increases annual employment from 100 to 125 days, it shifts funding from a predominantly Centre-funded model to a shared Centre–state arrangement. Unlike MGNREGA, which allows workers to demand work as and when needed, VB-GRAM(G) introduces a supply-driven, budget-capped approach, with projects planned under Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans aligned to national infrastructure priorities.

The new law also allows for a pause of up to 60 days during peak agricultural seasons, a provision absent in MGNREGA’s year-round design. It prioritises four thematic sectors—water security, core rural infrastructure, livelihood assets, and climate resilience, while expanding digital monitoring systems and penalties.

Representatives at the meeting said these changes centralise decision-making and dilute the legal guarantee that lies at the heart of MGNREGA.

‘Don’t take it away,” said a 21- year-old Aarti, MGNREGA worker from Rajasthan’s Beawar district.

She said that she wanted the government to fix MGNREGA’s flaws instead of dismantling it altogether.

“We want MGNREGA back. Yes, it has issues, but those need to be corrected,” she told Outlook, referring to delays caused by geo-tagging and digital attendance systems. “Improve it, but don’t remove it completely”

She also mentioned that she had worked under MGNREGA for two years, while her mother had been enrolled for nearly two decades. Their family, she said, depended heavily on the scheme.

Grassroots Mobilisation

The meeting, which stretched over five hours, brought together workers who had travelled from several states across the country to unanimously chart a strategy to oppose VB-GRAM(G).

Participants agreed that the first task was grassroots mobilisation, beginning at the panchayat level and building up to block and state-level actions.

Addressing the gathering, Vikram Singh, joint secretary of the All India Agricultural Workers’ Union, said the focus must be on directly engaging with NREGA workers in simple, accessible language. He noted that campaign material prepared by labour rights platforms would be circulated widely.

“We must go among people and explain what is being hidden from them,” he said, adding that the promised wage under the new scheme was being misrepresented.

Singh said even state ministers have slammed the new policy, calling it a significant political shift which the unions must use to gather as much support as they can for their movement.

A Phase-Wise Plan

The meeting concluded with the announcement of a phase-wise programme of action spread over the next two months. As part of the first step, Gram Sabhas will be held on January 26 in villages across the country, where resolutions opposing the VB-GRAM(G) scheme will be passed. This will be followed by state-level mobilisations on February 2, observed as MGNREGA Day, with actions shaped by local conditions and linked to a broader working-class strike in which NREGA will be one of the central demands.

Further steps, including possible political engagement with non-BJP-ruled states, will be decided later by a coordination committee, Vikram Singh said. He stressed that any coordination must remain democratic, open and inclusive, with representation from women, youth and students, as well as agricultural workers’ platforms and the MGNREGA Sangharsh Morcha. Trade unions, he added, could be brought in at a later stage depending on consensus.

“At the heart of this struggle is a simple message,” Singh said, urging organisers to return to NREGA workers and explain the changes clearly.

He mentioned that the wages have effectively been cut, legal rights have been taken away, and workers are being pushed towards dependency rather than entitlement.

“We do not want begging bowls. We want rights,” he said.