The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025, also known as the VB–G RAM G Bill, amidst intense protests from opposition parties. The bill, which aims to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) of 2005, promises a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment in a financial year for rural households.

Union Minister for Rural Development and Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shivraj Singh Chauhan, introduced the bill, emphasizing the government's commitment to the welfare of the poor and the holistic development of villages, aligning with Mahatma Gandhi's vision of self-reliant rural communities. Chauhan presented the bill as a transformative step to strengthen and expand the existing MGNREGA. He highlighted that the government has committed over ₹95,000 crore to the initiative.

The VB–G RAM G Bill seeks to align the rural development framework with the national vision of Viksit Bharat @2047. It focuses on empowerment, growth, convergence, and saturation of multiple government schemes through initiatives such as the 'Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans' coordinated via the PM Gati Shakti program. The bill envisions an integrated 'Viksit Bharat National Rural Infrastructure Stack' to manage rural public works effectively, emphasizing water security, core rural infrastructure, livelihood generation, and climate resilience.

One of the key changes proposed by the bill is an increase in the guaranteed employment days from 100 to 125 per rural household annually. The bill also introduces a 60-day "agricultural pause" during peak sowing and harvesting seasons to ensure agricultural labor availability. State governments can notify in advance which periods will see a suspension of public works under the scheme, tailoring these notifications to districts, blocks, or agro-climatic zones based on local cropping patterns.

Under the new bill, the fund-sharing pattern between the central and state governments will be 60:40 for all states except for North-eastern and Himalayan states, where it will be 90:10. State governments will be responsible for any expenditure exceeding the normative allocation determined by the central government.

The opposition has strongly criticized the bill, accusing the government of insulting Mahatma Gandhi and diluting the provisions of MGNREGA. Opposition MPs staged a protest march in the Parliament House complex, demanding the bill's withdrawal. Behind a banner with 'Mahatma Gandhi NREGA' written on it, they marched from the Gandhi statue at Prerna Sthal to Makar Dwar, raising slogans against the government.

Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge vowed to fight the government's move both in Parliament and on the streets, accusing the Modi government of crushing the right to work and insulting Mahatma Gandhi. Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi also joined the protesting MPs. AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal stated that the government was attempting to kill the democratic values and ideology of the Father of the Nation by removing Mahatma Gandhi's name from NREGA. DMK's TR Baalu said that the "father of the nation is being ridiculed by the BJP government".

Defending the bill, Chouhan stated that the Modi government was ensuring that the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi were upheld through various initiatives. He also addressed concerns about agricultural labor availability, stating that the bill empowers states to notify specific periods during which work under the bill will not be carried out.

The Lok Sabha passed the G RAM G Bill by a voice vote amid the uproar from the opposition. The speaker adjourned the Lok Sabha for the day after the bill was passed.