Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi delivered a blistering indictment of the Congress-led UPA government's flagship Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act during his first press conference at the state BJP headquarters, describing the program as fundamentally flawed and thoroughly compromised by systemic corruption, bureaucratic inefficiencies, and inherent structural deficiencies that undermined its core objectives.

Majhi positioned the recently enacted Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeebika Mission-Gramin Act as a superior, forward-looking alternative, emphasizing its pragmatic design, heavy reliance on cutting-edge technology for monitoring, and clear focus on delivering tangible outcomes to accelerate India's journey toward Viksit Bharat status by 2027 while authentically embodying Mahatma Gandhi's ideals of self-reliant Gram Swaraj through durable livelihood opportunities.

The chief minister substantiated his criticism by referencing documented large-scale malpractices under MGNREGA, including alleged multi-crore rupee scams in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, alongside specific instances in Odisha such as the 2012 Sambalpur irregularities where wages were fraudulently claimed for deceased persons, hospital patients, and existing pensioners, compounded by fabricated muster rolls, abandoned infrastructure projects, and widespread bogus payments.

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Majhi further highlighted practical failures on the ground, noting that despite the statutory guarantee of 100 days of wage employment per household, rural workers typically received only about 50 days of actual work, often at depressed rates and with chronic delays in disbursements, while the scheme's rigid scheduling overlooked seasonal agricultural cycles, triggering acute labor shortages during critical sowing and harvesting periods that adversely impacted farmers' productivity and costs.

Extolling the transformative features of the new VB-G RAM-G Act, Majhi detailed enhancements such as an increased entitlement to 125 days of employment per family, enforceable unemployment allowances payable within 15 days of application, provision for up to 60-day annual suspensions aligned with farming seasons, and comprehensive AI, GPS, and mobile-based oversight mechanisms targeting priority domains including water conservation, rural infrastructure, livelihood diversification, and climate adaptation to foster transparency, eliminate ghost beneficiaries, and create enduring community assets.

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