New Delhi, Dec 21: The President of India has given assent to the Viksit Bharat—Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB–G RAM G) Act, 2025, formally ushering in a new statutory framework for rural employment and livelihood security. The new law enhances the guaranteed wage employment for rural households from 100 to 125 days per financial year and replaces the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005, an official said.
According to the Ministry of Rural Development, the Act marks a significant shift in India’s rural development strategy by aligning employment generation with the broader vision of Viksit Bharat @2047. The legislation seeks to strengthen income security for rural households while linking wage employment with the creation of durable and productive rural assets.
Parliament had earlier passed the Bill, positioning it as a decisive reform aimed at transforming rural employment from a standalone welfare programme into an integrated development instrument. The government said the Act is anchored in the principles of empowerment, inclusive growth, convergence of schemes and saturation-based delivery.
Under the new law, eligible rural households whose adult members volunteer for unskilled manual work are entitled to a statutory guarantee of not less than 125 days of wage employment each year. The enhanced entitlement is expected to improve income stability and predictability of work, particularly for vulnerable rural families.
To balance the demand for agricultural labour during peak sowing and harvesting seasons, the Act empowers State governments to notify an aggregated pause period of up to 60 days in a financial year. Officials clarified that the full 125-day employment guarantee remains intact and is to be provided during the remaining period.
The legislation also mandates timely payment of wages, requiring that payments be made on a weekly basis or within 15 days of completion of work. In cases of delay, workers will be entitled to compensation, reinforcing wage security and accountability.
Employment generated under the Act will be linked to the creation of durable public assets across key areas such as water security, core rural infrastructure, livelihood-related infrastructure and works aimed at mitigating extreme weather events. All assets created will be aggregated into a national rural infrastructure stack to ensure convergence of public investments and outcome-based planning.
Decentralised planning remains a central feature of the new framework. All works will originate from Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans, prepared at the Gram Panchayat level through participatory processes and approved by Gram Sabhas. While planning visibility and coordination will be digitally integrated with national platforms such as PM Gati Shakti, the government said decision-making authority will continue to rest with local bodies.
The Act will be implemented as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with a cost-sharing pattern of 60:40 between the Centre and States, 90:10 for North Eastern and Himalayan States, and 100 per cent central funding for Union Territories without legislatures. Funding allocations will be based on objective and rule-based parameters to ensure predictability and fiscal discipline without diluting statutory entitlements.
Administrative capacity has also been strengthened under the new law, with the ceiling on administrative expenditure raised from 6 per cent to 9 per cent. This, the Ministry said, would allow for improved staffing, training and technical support at the field level.
Addressing concerns over employment rights, the government clarified that the Act does not dilute the right to demand work. Instead, it places a clear statutory obligation on authorities to provide guaranteed employment or unemployment allowance if work is not provided within the stipulated period. The Act restores unemployment allowance as a meaningful safeguard, payable after 15 days in cases of non-provision of work.
Technology-enabled systems such as biometric authentication, geo-tagging and real-time dashboards have been incorporated to improve transparency and monitoring. At the same time, social audits by Gram Sabhas have been strengthened to ensure community oversight and inclusion.
The Ministry of Rural Development said the Viksit Bharat–G RAM G Act, 2025 represents a major renewal of India’s rural employment framework. By expanding guaranteed employment, reinforcing decentralised governance and integrating livelihood generation with asset creation, the Act aims to position rural employment as a strategic driver of empowerment, resilience and long-term rural prosperity in line with the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.
