Kolkata: Bengal has notified the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) scheme, which will take effect from July 1 and replace the MGNREGS. The programme aligns with Centre’s Viksit Bharat @2047 vision and is expected to benefit about 2.56 crore job card holders in Bengal, the state govt stated. The scheme guarantees 125 days of wage employment per eligible rural household in a financial year.Funding will be shared between Centre and the state in a 60:40 ratio. While the ministry of rural development has approved a central allocation of Rs 8,508 crore, state govt has earmarked Rs 5,672 crore as its contribution.Speaking on this, state panchayat and rural development minister Dilip Ghosh said funding would never be a constraint for implementation of the scheme. He said Centre had assured the state that pending MGNREGS dues would be released after verification. Releasing payments without verification could create legal and financial complications for the new govt, he said, and added that works completed under the previous TMC govt would be investigated.Ghosh also flagged some administrative hurdles, saying nearly 2,000 panchayat pradhans in Bengal are either not functioning or have resigned.Under VB-G RAM G, every adult member of a registered household named on the Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Card can demand unskilled manual work from the panchayat. Employment must be provided within 15 days. Guidelines also provide delay compensation if wages are not credited within 15 days of muster roll closure, alongside added safeguards for transparency and accountability.
