India's Rural Jobs Scheme Overhauled: Congress Slams PM Modi, BJP Fires Back

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The Congress party has announced a nationwide agitation against the repeal of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of single-handedly destroying the landmark law. The party claims that the move will severely damage the rural economy, while the ruling BJP has hit back, accusing the Congress of political posturing. The MGNREGA, implemented in 2006, provided a guarantee of 100 days of work per year to rural households. However, the BJP-led government has replaced it with the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, which aims to strengthen employment and livelihood support in rural areas through technology, transparency, and timely payments. Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan accused the Congress of reducing the budget for MGNREGA and freezing wages during their tenure. He claimed that the new law aims to ensure that money reaches directly into workers' accounts and that the changes are not an attack on the rural workforce. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, however, called the MGNREGA a constitutional 'Right to Work' and vowed to protect it. He announced a nationwide 'MGNREGA Bachao Abhiyan' to mirror the protests against the three central farm laws that were eventually rolled back. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi likened the move to demonetisation, saying it was a direct assault on states and the poor. He accused the prime minister of single-handedly destroying the MGNREGA without studying the matter and claimed that the decision would cause tremendous pain to the weaker sections of society. The Congress has vowed to take its voice to every last village and protect the rights of India's workers. The BJP, however, has maintained that the new law is a necessary reform aimed at strengthening employment and livelihood support in rural areas.