West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday announced that the state government’s Karmashree scheme will be named after Mahatma Gandhi in response to the VB-G Ram-Ji Bill that replaces the central government’s MNREGA.
Speaking at the trade and industry conference held at the Dhano Dhanyo Auditorium, Mamata Banerjee called the renaming of India’s flagship rural employment scheme a “matter of deep shame”.
He said, “We have also started the Karmashree project, because MNREGA funds have also been stopped. I am deeply saddened by the removal of Gandhiji’s name. They are forgetting the Father of the Nation. We have decided to name our Karmashree scheme after Mahatma Gandhi.”
The West Bengal Chief Minister further said, “If you don’t know how to respect Mahatma Gandhi, we certainly know how to respect him and others like Netaji, Rabindranath Tagore.”
The Vikas Bharat Guaranteed Employment and Livelihood Mission (Rural) Bill, 2025, which was passed in the Lok Sabha today, has been giving rise to political controversy ever since it was introduced in Parliament.
The Bill guarantees 125 days of salaried employment to every rural household in each financial year, to rural households whose adult members voluntarily come forward to perform unskilled manual labour, thereby contributing to income security, in addition to the earlier entitlement of 100 days, and also prescribes a total of 60 days of non-work period to ensure availability of agricultural labor during the peak sowing and harvesting season.
This bill also makes a provision for sharing funds between the Center and the states in the ratio of 60:40.
Similarly, the Karmashree Scheme in West Bengal provides at least 50 days of salaried employment in a financial year to every job card holder family through various works implemented by various departments of the state government.
This morning, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram criticized the government over the VB-Ji Ram-Ji Bill and said that the BJP government wants to erase the memory of Mahatma Gandhi.
Speaking to ANI, Chidambaram said, “This is a sad day for our country. MGNREGA was a program on which the livelihood of many people depended. This is a revisionist government that wants to erase the memory of the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi by using absurd names like VB Ji Ram Ji. These people are not only revisionist but also anti-poor and anti-marginalized people. We will convey this message to the people of India.”
Meanwhile, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan defended the bill, saying rural development schemes have changed with time, and the VB-G RAM-G scheme will provide 125 days of employment guarantee compared to 100 days under MGNREGA.
Speaking on the issue of 60:40 sharing of funds between the Central and state governments, the Union Minister said that out of the total proposed Rs 1,51,282 crore, the Centre’s share is more than Rs 95,000 crore.
Speaking to reporters, he said, “You have your opinion, but don’t let others speak. Is it not unethical? I condemn their actions. There have been many schemes for rural development. A scheme runs for a few days and then gets changed, like Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojana, Jawahar Rozgar Yojana, and then came MNREGA. It was not named after Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, so was it an insult to him? Welfare of the poor BJP There is a resolve, and many schemes were brought under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that is why 25 crore people have risen above the poverty line.”
He said, “Developed villages for developed India” is the resolve of Modi ji. It had an employment guarantee of 100 days, which has been increased to 125 days, and substantial funds have been proposed to support this extension, totaling Rs 1,51,282 crore.”
“The central government’s share in this amount is more than Rs 95,000 crore,” the BJP leader said.