Punjab Assembly passes resolution against G RAM G; demands restoration of MGNREGA

Chandigarh, Dec 30 (PTI) The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed a resolution against the VB-G RAM G Act in the Vidhan Sabha, accusing the BJP-led Centre of "taking away" the livelihoods of the poor and Dalit labourers by scrapping MGNREGA under a "deliberate conspiracy".

The House recommended that the Punjab government seek from the Centre to immediately restore the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act ( MGNREGA) to its original right-based form.

The House also took note that Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) (SAD) has maintained "silence" on this entire issue in the hope of reestablishing an alliance with the BJP for the 2027 assembly polls.

The AAP government had called a one-day special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha to oppose the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act (VB-G RAM G).

However, the two BJP MLAs were not in the House when the resolution was passed.

The ruling AAP leaders called the Centre's move of bringing the VB-G RAM G Act to replace the MGNREGA as "anti-poor", claiming it will "snatch away bread from the mouths of the poor".

The AAP leaders also described it as "an attack on the federal structure".

During the session, Rural Development and Panchayat Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond tabled the resolution in the House for discussion.

Sond said that the VB-G RAM G Act will severely impact below-poverty-line families, Scheduled Caste (SC) communities and rural labourers who depend on the MGNREGA for survival.

Alleging that the Centre wanted to "finish" the MGNREGA, Sond demanded its restoration.

According to the resolution, the BJP central government has taken away the livelihood of Dalit labourers, Dalit families and the poor Dalit community by scrapping MGNREGA.

"This is a deliberate and dangerous conspiracy. The BJP central government has not only dismantled MGNREGA but it has also taken away the livelihood of Dalit labourers. This House believes that the BJP central government has not only destroyed a government scheme but it has also destroyed the right to survival of the Dalit labourers of the country," it claimed.

Claiming that the MGNREGA was the last means of survival for millions of Dalits and poor Dalit families in the country, the resolution stated that it was the system that allowed Dalit labourers to stay in their villages, earn their livelihood through hard work, send their children to school and live with dignity.

"Abolishing MGNREGA is not a decision to implement the scheme but a declaration of thought from an anti-Dalit perspective. By scrapping MGNREGA, the central BJP government has taken away jobs from Dalit labourers, deprived Dalit children of education and extinguished the kitchen stoves of Dalit families," it said.

"A government that extinguishes the kitchen stoves of the Dalits forfeits its moral right to seek votes from the Dalit community. This House clearly states that the policies of the BJP central government are anti-Dalit. The decisions of the BJP's central government repeatedly prove that the BJP hates Dalits and wants to marginalise them," according to the resolution.

Attacking MGNREGA is actually an attack on the dignity and existence of Dalits, the resolution said.

"This House also says that the government which does not provide jobs to Dalits in villages pushes them to urban slums. Today, the central BJP government has taken away the moral right of Dalit workers and poor Dalit families to seek votes. A government that does not care about the livelihood of Dalits has no moral demand for Dalit votes," it said.

The House also took note that the SAD maintained silence on this entire issue.

"This silence is because they hope to reestablish their alliance with the BJP in 2027, even if the Dalits have to pay the price for it. Keeping silent on the verdicts against Dalits is also a crime," read the resolution.

The House recommended that the state government demand from the BJP central government to immediately withdraw the decision to scrap MGNREGA, fully restore MGNREGA to its original right-based form and ensure guaranteed work and wages for Dalit labourers and poor Dalit families across the country.

Participating in the discussion on the resolution, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema accused the Centre of "systematically dismantling" the MGNREGA and "stripping the poor of their right to a livelihood".

It is an "assault on the stomachs of the marginalised," he alleged.

Cabinet Minister Aman Arora termed VB-G RAM G a calculated move to deny guaranteed employment.

Arora challenged the very foundation of the scheme. He said, "They talk about an 'average' of 26 days of employment in Punjab. Even if we accept this dubious average, my question is, what was the purpose of increasing the days from 100 to 125? "This is nothing but making fools of the people. If an MGNREGA labourer knows he won't get wages for six to eight months, will he show up for work? Even if panchayats want to start projects, how will they pay for materials if funds are not released from the top? The Centre has single-handedly killed this scheme," he said. PTI CHS VSD KSS KSS