Punjab Government Notifies Rural Employment Scheme After Opposing It

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab has officially notified the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin (VB-G RAM G) scheme, marking a reversal from its earlier opposition. The scheme will come into effect from July 1, 2026, according to a gazette notification issued on June 26, 2026.

In December 2025, the Punjab government had convened a special session of the state assembly, which unanimously passed a resolution against the VB-G RAM G Act. The resolution accused the BJP-led central government of undermining the livelihoods of poor and Dalit labourers by replacing the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). The assembly had recommended that the state government urge the centre to restore MGNREGA in its original rights-based form.

The June 26 notification, however, states that the scheme aims to “align the rural development framework with the national vision of Viksit Bharat 2047” by providing an enhanced statutory wage employment guarantee of 125 days per financial year to rural households whose adult members volunteer for unskilled manual work. It emphasises a focus on employment, growth, convergence, and saturation. The notification was issued by the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats under the provisions of the VB-G RAM G Act, 2025.

The opposition Congress party criticised the AAP government for what it termed a “U-turn”. Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring questioned the timing of the scheme's implementation, suggesting it may be linked to a recent controversy involving Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Warring asked under what “deal and compromise” with the BJP the scheme was implemented.

The state government has yet to respond to these allegations. The scheme’s notification represents a significant policy shift, bringing Punjab in line with the central government's rural employment framework.