West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said that her government will launch its rural job guarantee program ‘Karmashree’. Will be renamed after Mahatma Gandhi. He accused the BJP government at the Center of trying to replace the 20-year-old MGNREGA with the VB-G RAM G scheme.
Speaking at the Business and Industry Conclave on Thursday, Mamata Banerjee, without directly naming BJP, said that if some political parties “do not respect our national icons. It is a matter of shame.”
His announcement came when the Lok Sabha passed the Developed India-Employment and Livelihood Mission (Rural) (VB-G RAM G), which will replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA).
Now we are also forgetting the Father of the Nation… Mamta Banerjee
Addressing a business meeting at Dhana Dhanya Auditorium, Mamata Banerjee said, “I feel ashamed that they have decided to remove Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the MGNREGA programme, because I am also from this country. We are now forgetting the Father of the Nation as well.”
He further said, “We will now change the name of our state’s Karmashree Scheme after Mahatma Gandhi.” Under the ‘Karmashree’ scheme, the state government claims to provide work to the beneficiaries for 75 days. Mamata Banerjee alleged that the Center is withholding funds under MGNREGA.
Mamata Banerjee said that the state aims to increase the number of working days under ‘Karmashree’ to 100 in future. He said, “We have already created a lot of work days under ‘Karmashree’, which we are running with our own resources. Even if the Centre’s funds are stopped, we will ensure that people get work. We are not beggars.
What’s in the new bill?
There is not much difference between the MGNREGA scheme and the Jeeramji bill passed in the Lok Sabha. For example, under the MGNREGA scheme, the central government used to guarantee at least 100 days of work to the beneficiaries, but in this new bill, 125 days of work has been guaranteed.
Along with this, the Modi government has also made many changes regarding grants in the new bill. In the MGNREGA scheme, the entire responsibility of financial grant was of the Centre, but, in this new bill, the Central Government will give money in the ratio of 60:40 to every state and union territory, except the special union territories.
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