The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed a bill that seeks to replace the 20-year-old MGNREGA with a new initiative amid vociferous protests by the Opposition
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NEW DELHI — The Lok Sabha on Thursday passed a bill that seeks to replace the 20-year-old MGNREGA with a new initiative that guarantees rural jobs for 125 days every year amid vociferous protests by the Opposition.
Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan responded to the eight-hour discussion on The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, asserting that the Modi government was ensuring that the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi were upheld through various initiatives taken by it.
"Congress killed ideals of Bapu, NDA ensured Bapu lives through pucca houses built under the PM Awas Yojana, Ujjwala yojana, Swachh Bharat Mission, Ayushman Bharat," Chouhan said listing out government schemes for welfare of the poor.
Opposition members trooped to the well of the House raising slogans against the government from dropping Mahatma Gandhi's name from the rural jobs initiative and tearing copies of the G RAM G Bill and flinging it towards the chair.
The Lok Sabha passed the G RAM G Bill by a voice vote amid uproar by the opposition. The speaker adjourned the Lok Sabha for the day after the bill was passed.
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G RAM G bill: Opposition's protest march in Parliament complex, Kharge vows to take fight to streets
Several opposition MPs on Thursday took out a protest march inside the Parliament House complex against the G RAM G bill with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge asserting that there will be a nationwide movement against this "systematic murder of the world's largest employment scheme".
Behind a huge banner of 'Mahatma Gandhi NREGA', they marched from the Gandhi statue at Prerna Sthal to Makar Dwar, raising slogans against the government.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, DMK's K Kanhimozhi, TR Ballu, A Raja, IUML's ET Mohammed Basheer, Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Arvind Sawant and RSP's N K Premchandran, among others, participated in the protest.
"The Modi government has not only insulted the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, but has also crushed the right to work, which was instrumental in bringing about socio-economic transformation in India's villages," Kharge said in a post on X in Hindi after the protest.
"Against this tyranny of the ruling dictatorial government, we will fight from Parliament to the streets," Kharge said.
In another post, Kharge said, "This is not merely a case of renaming MGNREGA; rather, it is the systematic murder of the world's largest employment scheme."
Speaking with reporters, Kharge said they are taking away the right to work from people and asserted that "there will be a nationwide movement against it".
Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi joined the protesting MPs and participated in the demonstrations at Makar Dwar.
Speaking to reporters, Venugopal said, "Today, Parliament is witnessing the murder of democracy. By removing the name of Mahatma Gandhi from NREGA they are trying to kill the democratic values as well as the ideology of the Father of the Nation."
The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill to replace the UPA-era MGNREGA is being debated in Parliament.
The Opposition has been strongly opposing the Bill, accusing the government of insulting Mahatma Gandhi and diluting the provisions of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005.
According to the bill, it will provide a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment in a financial year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer to undertake unskilled manual work.
Within six months from the date of commencement of the VB-G RAM G Act, states will have to make a scheme consistent with the provisions of the new law.