President Droupadi Murmu has granted assent to the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025, officially enacting it into law on December 21, 2025. This legislation fully replaces the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) of 2005, introducing a modernised framework designed to enhance livelihood security and accelerate rural development in alignment with the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision.

The new Act establishes a statutory guarantee of 125 days of wage employment per financial year for every rural household whose adult members volunteer to perform unskilled manual work, marking an increase from the previous 100-day entitlement under MGNREGA. It emphasises empowerment, inclusive growth, convergence of schemes, and saturation-based delivery to build a prosperous, resilient, and self-reliant rural India. Prioritised works will focus on critical areas including water security, core rural infrastructure, livelihood-supporting assets, and measures for climate resilience and mitigation of extreme weather events.

All assets created under the scheme will be digitally mapped and integrated into the Viksit Bharat National Rural Infrastructure Stack, enabling coordinated national-level planning and integration with platforms such as PM Gati Shakti. This ensures avoidance of duplication, promotes convergence with other development initiatives, and facilitates long-term monitoring and utilisation of public investments for sustainable rural progress.

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Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan highlighted that the legislation will foster comprehensive village development by generating abundant employment opportunities, upholding the dignity of labour, and providing enhanced safeguards for vulnerable sections such as the differently-abled, elderly, women, Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes. The Act also strengthens demand-driven elements by retaining provisions for unemployment allowances if work is not provided within 15 days, while introducing timely wage payments and technology-enabled transparency.

With an initial allocation of ₹95,000 crore, the government has introduced reforms for efficient fund utilisation, including greater decentralised powers to gram panchayats and gram sabhas in project selection and planning through Viksit Gram Panchayat Plans. Additional measures raise the administrative expenditure ceiling to 9%, bolster social audits, and establish dedicated councils and steering committees at central and state levels to oversee implementation, accountability, and policy guidance.

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