Much has been spoken about the VB-G RAM G Bill. But beyond everything else, these changes will slowly make the scheme untenable and eventually kill the idea of a rights-based rural employment guarantee. By converting MGNREGA from a demand-driven entitlement into a supply-driven scheme, citizens can no longer demand work as a right. The central government retains most of the powers while states carry most of the burden. A legal right to work is now being reduced to a token centrally sponsored scheme. The Bill erodes fiscal federalism by shifting a massive financial burden onto states at a time when tax devolution has fallen from 34% to 31%, far below the Finance Commission’s recommended 42% even as Centrally Sponsored Schemes are increasingly constrained. It also weakens the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, which gave constitutional status to Panchayati Raj institutions, by centralising decision-making and diluting local planning and decentralised governance. So how is this a ‘reform’ when it does not, in any meaningful way, strengthen the scheme for those who depend on it most?
