PIB Kohima Organises Discourse on VB-G RAM G with Kohima Press Club KOHIMA — The Press Information Bureau (PIB) Kohima, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, organised a discourse on the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission, Gramin (VB-G RAM G) with members of the Kohima Press Club (KPC) in Kohima on Wednesday. The event focused on the newly launched rural development initiative, which is a renamed version of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and is set to be implemented under the Ministry of Rural Development. VB-G RAM G, which has not yet commenced operations, aims to enhance rural employment through structural changes. Jayanta Choudhury, Head of the Department of Rural Development and Planning at Nagaland University, served as the resource speaker. He outlined the key differences between the new scheme and its predecessor, noting that VB-G RAM G introduces a guaranteed 125 employment days for rural workers. However, he emphasized that the program lacks provisions for inflation-linked wage adjustments or solutions to long-standing wage stagnation, which have been persistent issues under MGNREGA. Choudhury highlighted that the new scheme shifts a greater financial burden to state governments, with a 90:10 funding ratio for Northeastern states, Himalayan states, and Jammu and Kashmir, compared to the broader central funding model of MGNREGA. This shift could strain state budgets, particularly in economically weaker regions or areas with high migration rates. He also warned that unreliable digital infrastructure and poor network connectivity in rural, especially northeastern, areas may hinder the implementation of mandatory biometric attendance systems, a key feature of the new program.#nagaland_university #pib_kohima #kohima_press_club #vb_g_ram_g
