New Delhi, Feb 10 (PTI) The Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act has been framed as a gender-inclusive legislation with several provisions aimed at strengthening the participation and livelihoods of women and women-headed rural households, the government said on Tuesday.
In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Rural Development Kamlesh Paswan said that under the VB-G RAM G scheme, at least one-third of all beneficiaries must be women.
Emphasis has been laid on issuance of special job cards to women-headed households and single women.
The Act also focuses on creation of livelihood-related infrastructure such as self-help group buildings, work sheds, training and skill centres, compost and vermi-compost units, nurseries, livestock shelters, fisheries facilities, storage structures and rural haats. These productive assets are intended at directly strengthening women workers and self-help groups, the minister said.
To facilitate women’s productive engagement, a distinct Schedule of Rates has been prescribed for women workers. Creche facilities will be mandatory at worksites where five or more children below five years accompany working women, he said.
Women will also be encouraged to take up supervisory roles as Mates, and their participation will be further strengthened through social audits, where women will play an active role in ensuring timely payments and proper execution of projects.
In addition, the Act mandates one-third representation of women in both the Central Employment Guarantee Council and the State Employment Guarantee Councils to be constituted under its provisions, Paswan added.
The grievance redressal mechanism under the Act will specifically address complaints relating to discrimination, harassment and violation of worker rights, including those affecting women and other vulnerable groups.
The VB-G RAM G Act, 2025 seeks to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which has been in operation since 2006 as India’s flagship rural employment programme.
The Act increases the statutory employment guarantee from 100 days under MGNREGS to 125 days of wage employment per rural household each year.
While the government has argued that the new law modernises and strengthens the framework by focusing more sharply on durable asset creation, skilling, women’s participation, technology-driven transparency and faster grievance redressal, opposition parties have expressed concerns that replacing MGNREGS could dilute the legal right to work, weaken wage protections and reduce budgetary commitments for rural households. PTI AO RUK RUK
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