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Regarding Need to review the renaming and other
amendments in MGNREGA-Laid
SHRI K. E. PRAKASH (ERODE): I like to express concern over
the renaming and replacement of MGNREGA, and the weakening
of the rural job guarantee. MGNREGA was not merely a scheme
but a law that guaranteed employment to rural households. The
name of Mahatma Gandhi symbolised dignity of labour and social
justice. I speak not only as a MP, but also as someone from a rural
farming community, and representing Erode, a rural agrarian
constituency. In areas like mine, MGNREGA has been a vital
source of livelihood for small farmers, landless labourers, and
women. The new framework removes the legal guarantee of work
and converts a right into a budget-dependent scheme. Earlier, the
Union Government paid 100 percent of unskilled wages. The new
60:40 funding pattern shifts 40 percent of the cost to States,
making employment dependent on State finances rather than
need. Union funding is also capped through state-wise allocations
fixed annually and raising concerns of unequal treatment of
Opposition ruled States. The introduction of a compulsory 60-day
blackout period during peak agricultural season, biometric
authentication, and digital attendance systems risks exclusion and
wage denial. I urge the Government to reconsider these changes
and protect the legal right to work and rural livelihood security.