On the 20th anniversary of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), workers’ organisations and unions across India held nationwide protests on February 2, 2026, warning that the landmark rights-based employment law is under threat following the introduction of the Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-GRAM G).
The protests were coordinated by the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha, which described MGNREGA as one of independent India’s most significant welfare legislations rooted in the constitutional promise of the right to life with dignity.
Demonstrations, rallies, mazdoor mahapanchayats and memorandum submissions were reported from several states, including Jharkhand, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Telangana. Large gatherings took place in Ranchi, Bengaluru and Jaipur, while workers from Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan assembled at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Protesters raised a common demand for the withdrawal of VB-GRAM G and the continuation of MGNREGA with higher wages and an increased number of guaranteed workdays.
MGNREGA, implemented in 2006 after years of mobilisation by workers’ movements and civil society groups, has provided employment security to millions of rural households during periods of agrarian distress, droughts and economic crises. According to the Morcha, the scheme contributed to improved wage levels in rural areas, expanded women’s participation in paid work, reduced distress migration and led to the creation of durable community assets such as water conservation structures and rural infrastructure. The organisation also highlighted testimonies from workers who credited the programme with improving household food security, health and access to education, while strengthening participation in local democratic planning through gram sabhas.
The Morcha expressed concern over budgetary allocations announced for 2026, noting that ₹30,000 crore has been earmarked for MGNREGA while ₹95,690 crore has been allocated to VB-GRAM G, creating what it described as confusion and opacity. It argued that the capped and target-driven nature of the new programme would make it difficult for workers to secure employment, regardless of whether work is sought under MGNREGA or the new scheme.
Criticising the replacement of MGNREGA with VB-GRAM G, the organisation stated that the new framework shifts responsibility to states and local bodies without adequate financial support, weakens the autonomy of gram panchayats and replaces legal entitlements with guidelines that dilute accountability mechanisms such as social audits and time-bound wage payments. It warned that this shift could deepen fiscal stress on states, undermine cooperative federalism and convert a constitutional guarantee into a discretionary welfare scheme dependent on political priorities.
The Morcha further argued that the removal of Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the employment guarantee reflects a broader political move away from the values of participatory democracy, decentralisation and rights-based citizenship. Linking the issue to wider concerns over labour casualisation, delayed wages and shrinking welfare budgets, it described the changes as part of a trend that increases economic precarity among rural and informal workers.
Marking two decades of MGNREGA, the NREGA Sangharsh Morcha reiterated its demand for the immediate withdrawal of VB-GRAM G, full restoration of MGNREGA in its original legal form, enhanced budgets, timely wage payments, expansion to 200 days of work, higher wages linked to inflation and minimum wage standards, and protection of gram sabha authority. It stated that the future of MGNREGA represents a broader test of India’s commitment to social justice, federalism and democratic accountability.
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